Three defendants sentenced for Smyrna’s largest methamphetamine seizure ever

 ATLANTA - Alejandro Salazar-Gama, Miguel Salazar-Gama, and Arturo Acevedo have been sentenced for their roles in a drug trafficking conspiracy that involved nearly 40 kilograms of 100 percent pure methamphetamine.

“Methamphetamine trafficking breeds violent crime and threatens our community,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “We and our law enforcement partners are working hard to combat the trafficking of methamphetamine into and through the Northern District of Georgia, and we will use every tool available stop it.”

“Methamphetamine poses a clear and present danger to our communities,” said the Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division Robert J. Murphy. “Because of the collaborative effort between DEA and its law enforcement partners, citizens of the Smyrna, Georgia community can sleep better at night knowing that these defendants will spend well-deserved time in federal prison.”

“This should be a shot across the bow to criminal elements intent on distributing their poison in our communities.  Law enforcement agencies in North Georgia are united and determined in keeping our communities safe,” said Dan Salter, Director of the Atlanta-Carolinas High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA).

According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: On April 10, 2019, an undercover agent with the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Atlanta-Carolinas High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area program arranged via telephone to purchase 40 kilograms of methamphetamine at a business in Smyrna, Georgia.

At the time and place of the arranged meeting, defendant Alejandro Salazar-Gama met the undercover agent and agreed to bring the drugs to the parking lot to show the undercover agent before selling the drugs to the agent. Alejandro Salazar-Gama left the parking lot and returned about 40 minutes later. Shortly afterwards, a van arrived driven by defendant Arturo Acevedo with defendant Miguel Salazar-Gama as a passenger.

When the undercover agent went inside the van, he/she opened one of the boxes located inside the van and saw that the box contained methamphetamine.  At that time, the City of Smyrna Police Department SWAT team surrounded the three defendants and arrested them. In total, the drugs weighed more than 39 kilograms and subsequently tested positive for methamphetamine at 100 percent purity. Law enforcement officers believe that this is the largest quantity of methamphetamine ever seized in the City of Smyrna.

The three defendants were sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Thomas W. Thrash Jr., to the following:

• Alejandro Salazar-Gama, 31, of Sandy Springs, Georgia, has been sentenced to 11 years, seven months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release.  Salazar-Gama was sentenced on June 17, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.

• Arturo Acevedo, 22, of Sandy Springs, Georgia, has been sentenced to 14 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Acevedo was sentenced on September 15, 2021, after he pleaded guilty.

• Miguel Salazar-Gama, 29, of Sandy Springs, Georgia, has been sentenced to three years in prison. Salazar-Gama was sentenced on September 15, 2021, after he pleaded guilty.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Atlanta-Carolinas High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area program, and the City of Smyrna Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas N. Joy prosecuted the case.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Atlanta recommends parents and children learn about the dangers of drugs at the following web site: www.justthinktwice.gov.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.