The U-S District attorney for Middle Tennessee, along with state and local law enforcement officials, announced today/yesterday the seizure of 55 kilos of cocaine–the second largest cocaine bust ever in the mid-state.
Craig Morford, who assumed the Middle Tennessee district attorney post earlier this month, says 9 individuals were arrested in connection with a Mexican drug smuggling and money laundering organization.
“The targets of this investigation are part of the Pineda drug trafficking organization in Georgia. And it has been shipping large quantities of cocaine into this district from Mexico. The goal of the investigation was to dismantle and destroy what was a virtual pipeline of cocaine that has been coming into the communities of this district from Mexico through this organization.”
Officials say this was one of the major cocaine suppliers in Middle Tennessee.
The cocaine and several firearms were confiscated last Thursday from a truck parked outside a house in Brentwood, owned by a family member of one of the defendants. 5 of the 9 individuals are Mexican nationals. The rest are U-S citizens.
Earlier this month, agents found nearly 500-thousand dollars in a hidden compartment in a vehicle, bringing the grand total of money seized from the group to over 1-million dollars.
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