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Record meth seizure made in Gainesville; case involves an illegal alien
Atlanta Business Chronicle - 2:13 PM EDT Wednesday

Federal, state, and local law enforcement authorities in North Georgia have reported a record seizure of about 341 pounds of suspected crystal methamphetamine at a residence in Gainesville, Ga.

The find breaks a previous record seizure of 187 pounds of meth made just two weeks ago in Buford, Ga., officials said.

A federal criminal complaint has been filed against three brothers, Alejandro Martinez-Menera, 23, Socorro Martinez-Menera, 25, and Sacarias Martinez-Menera, 21, charging them with possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Sacarias Martinez-Menera and a fourth defendant, Arnulfo Pineda-Rivera, 32, are also charged with growing a large number of marijuana plants. Pineda-Rivera is further charged with being an illegal alien who re-entered the United States after being deported. All four defendants lived in Gainesville.

Alejandro Martinez-Menera and Arnulfo Pineda-Rivera have been arrested and made their initial appearance in federal court on Tuesday. Socorro Martinez-Menera and Sacarias Martinez-Menera are considered fugitives.

The seizure was the result of a three-month, multi-agency investigation, which started in the Chattahoochee National Forest with the discovery of a large marijuana field. It was led by the USDA Forest Service and involved the Union County Sheriff's Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The investigation began on June 29, when a helicopter pilot flying for the Governor's Drug Task Force spotted about 300 marijuana plants growing cultivated on Chattahoochee National Forest land in Union County. The U.S. Forest Service, Union County Sheriff's Office and ATF began a joint investigation and were able to determine four people living in Hall County were tending the marijuana plants.

The marijuana cultivation site was off of Forest Route 39, Duncan Ridge Road, on Chattahoochee National Forest Service property in Union County. Human and electronic surveillance allegedly identified Alejandro Martinez-Menera, Socorro Martinez-Menera, Sacarias Martinez-Menera and Arnulfo Pineda-Rivera cultivating the marijuana.

Further investigation allegedly showed Alejandro Martinez-Menera and his brothers were also operating out of a home at 2416 Crossgate Court in Gainesville. On Aug. 21, agents of the U.S. Forest Service, ATF, FBI, the Union County Sheriff's Office and the Hall County Major Offender's Task Force executed a federal search warrant at that residence; they obtained a second search warrant for the residence the following day. Agents found a large quantity of methamphetamine and processed marijuana leaves in the garage and in a closet inside the house. Some of the methamphetamine (41 packages) was located in a closet inside a gray cooler. Agents also located a 9mm semi-automatic Baretta pistol in a closet. In drawers in the kitchen, agents located two sets of digital scales and three different packages of a cutting agent.

Agents saw freshly disturbed dirt in a number of areas of the backyard, as well as shovels with fresh dirt on them. While digging down into one site, agents located a piece of wood which was covering a gray cooler with a white lid, with gray duct tape running the entire circumference of the cooler. After a second search warrant was issued, agents opened the cooler and discovered 41 packages of methamphetamine. The agents discovered a second buried cooler which contained another 17 packages. The methamphetamine appears to be uncut crystal meth, or "ice."

At a news conference Wednesday at ATF-Atlanta, law enforcement officials said this was the largest meth seizure in Georgia history. The suspected crystal methamphetamine in uncut form has a minimum estimated street value of $17 million, and depending on how many times it is "cut," DEA estimates that the street value could be over $50 million.

"Each record meth seizure we make is an unfortunate reminder that North Georgia has become a central hub for the meth epidemic that is afflicting not just our communities but much of the nation," said U.S. Attorney David E. Nahmias. "The only good news is that through close cooperation and hard work by our law enforcement agencies, we are seizing more and more drugs and putting more and more drug dealers behind bars where they belong. Our hope is that they will get the message that they don't want to operate here in Georgia."