7/15/2008 12:01:00 AM


Special Photo
Federal agents rescued Oscar Reynoso, an alleged drug dealer, kidnapped by several men July 5 and chained to a wall in the basement of a middle-class Lilburn home allegedly in retaliation for a drug debt he owed. His three captors were arrested shortly after fleeing the scene. Upon searching the home, Reynoso was found chained and severely dehydrated near a mattress.

Man found chained to wall in home
Victim allegedly kidnapped to pay drug debt

By Alex P. Joyner
Staff Writer

ATLANTA - Clogged roads and seemingly endless blocks of sprawl - for years synonymous with Gwinnett for all the wrong reasons - are being replaced as the county's siren song.

Federal officials said Monday that Gwinnett is now the focal point of competing metro area Mexican drug cartels trafficking cocaine and methamphetamines due to its burgeoning Hispanic population and transportation infrastructure.

And in the last 90 days, there has been an uptick in brutal violence borne out of the trade that once was sequestered inside the Mexican border.

"These traffickers unleash ruthless forms of violence in order to protect and defend their drugs and cash," said Rod Benson, special agent in charge of the Atlanta's Drug Enforcement Office office.

That analysis came three days after federal agents rescued an alleged drug dealer who was kidnapped by several men July 5 and chained to a wall in the basement of a middle-class Lilburn home in retaliation for a drug debt he owed. His three captors were arrested shortly after fleeing the scene.

Oscar Reynoso, 31, currently in federal custody for his safety, was found severely dehydrated and badly beaten July 11 by authorities after being chained and gagged for a week. He allegedly was being held as ransom for owing a man named Tio about $300,000 in drug-related debts, the Justice Department said.

His three captors - Victor Abiles-Gomez, 20, Omar Mendoza-Villegas, 19, and Gerardo Solorio-Reyes, 23, - made an initial appearance Monday in federal magistrate court, charged with kidnapping for ransom and conspiracy to distribute cocaine. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Monday. All three are in the country illegally.

Tio, however, remains at large.

"That investigation is ongoing," United States Attorney David Nahmias said.

The kidnapping - Gwinnett's second drug-related nabbing in a week - was broken up after federal and local authorities received a confidential tip that Reynoso was being held at 755 E. Fork Shady Drive in Lilburn. After spotting law enforcement officers, the trio attempted to flee but were later caught by DEA agents.

Upon searching the home, Reynoso was found chained and hyperventilating near a mattress. Agents removed his gag and gave him fluids and medical attention. He was arrested and detained as a material witness.

Reynoso, a native of the Dominican Republic, told authorities he was lured to Atlanta from Rhode Island to buy a car with Tio. He said he met Tio at a Gwinnett restaurant and the two rode to the East Fork Shady Drive residence. When Reynoso entered the garage, he allegedly was ambushed and beaten by seven men, some of whom carried firearms.

While he was held hostage, Reynoso's alleged captors, including Tio, contacted Reynoso's wife in Rhode Island to collect the debt, Justice Department officials said. He also was constantly threatened during the ordeal.

Reynoso's captors appeared diminutive and nervous as DEA officials ushered them into United States Magistrate Judge Janet F. King's courtroom Monday afternoon. Each looked at the ground as they listened to a translator, their clothes soiled from Friday's raid.

Reynoso - wearing a dirty white T-shirt and jeans, and noticeably groggy - had an initial hearing in King's courtroom about an hour before his captors appeared. Though he is not being charged with a criminal act, he remains in federal custody due to concerns for his safety.

Speaking with reporters after the hearings, Nahmias and Benson said they have seen an upswing in drug-related violence in the past 90 days, the majority of which is occurring in Gwinnett.

"It's a significant concern for the community," Nahmias said.

Reynoso shared a similar plight with Juan Arce-Flores, an alleged drug dealer abducted July 1 as ransom for a drug-related debt.

A confrontation with Gwinnett police SWAT officers left one kidnapping suspect dead in the parking lot of a Waffle House July 7. Police said the suspect, Richard Garcia, 23, made "aggressive movements" toward a weapon as officers approached his vehicle during a ransom ploy gone awry. Arce-Flores - listed as one of the Sheriff's Department's "Most Wanted" suspects for allegedly dealing cocaine - was later found unharmed. He remains in the Gwinnett County Jail.

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