North Georgia drug agents have wrapped up a 16-month long investigation they called "Operation Unicoi Pipeline" and in the process, they removed $725,000 worth of methamphetamine from the streets.
Mitchell Posey, Special Agent in Charge of the Appalachian Regional Drug Enforcement Office (ARDEO), released information Friday on the operation.
Posey said law enforcement officers from a number of agencies raided suspected meth traffickers in North Georgia and North Carolina on Wednesday, Sept. 5 and found more than 150 kilos of meth, a number of stolen firearms and cash.
"Officers executed numerous search warrants in Georgia and Clay County, North Carolina," Posey said in a press release. "This investigation revealed Charles Michael Ledford and Bobby Roger Burch were responsible for the distribution of more than 150 kilograms of methamphetamine in North Georgia and Clay County, North Carolina over the past two years."
Posey said the street value of the seized illegal drugs was placed at more than $725,000.
"Authorities found over three pounds of methamphetamine hidden in a battery of Bobby Roger "Rob" Burch's truck in Gainesville, Georgia," Posey said. "Burch had just left Charles Michael Ledford's residence in Conyers and was traveling to Hayesville, North Carolina. Authorities executed search warrants at Ledford's residence and found another 12 pounds of methamphetamine."
In addition, agents executed a search warrant at Michael Byers' residence in Young Harris, Georgia and found one ounce of methamphetamine.
North Carolina authorities executed a number of search warrants in Clay County, North Carolina, and seized a cache of guns and illegal narcotics from Burch's residence, according to Posey. He said a number of the guns had been reported stolen.
Ledford, 48, of Conyers was charged with trafficking methamphetamine and jailed at the Rockdale County Detention Center.
Burch, 47, of Hayesville, NC was charged with trafficking methamphetamine and jailed at the Hall County Detention Center. Posey said warrants are pending in Clay County, NC for on charges of maintain vehicle/dwelling/place for controlled substances, possession with intent to manufacture/sell/deliver methamphetamine and possession of stolen firearms.
Byers, 46, of Young Harris was arrested for trafficking methamphetamine in Georgia and sell/deliver methamphetamine and trafficking in methamphetamine in Clay County, NC. Byers was jailed at the Towns County Detention Center.
Posey said the investigation is ongoing and he expects other arrests.
Posey said a number of agencies had active roles in the investigation including the Towns County Sheriff's Office, the Clay County, North Carolina Sheriff's Office, the Rockdale County Sheriff's Office Special Investigations Unit, Macon County Sheriff's Office K9 Unit and Special Response Team "SRT," the Highlands Police Department, the Cherokee Indian Police Department, the Swain County, NC Sheriff's Office, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, the DEA, the Hall County Sheriff's Office Multi Agency Narcotics Squad and the GBI's West Metro Regional Drug Enforcement Office.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2018/9/710841/operation-unicoi-pipeline-agents-seize-725k-worth-of-meth