Hall County and federal authorities arrested a man in Gainesville after hundreds of kilos of methamphetamine were found in a shipment of blackberries last week.
The Hall County Sheriff’s Office issued a statement Monday afternoon, saying the meth was in a refrigerated box truck parked outside of a business on McEver Road near Browns Bridge Road in the early morning hours Friday, Nov. 21.
“The truck was believed to contain illegal narcotics from Mexico that had been transported to metro Atlanta for distribution throughout North Georgia,” the sheriff’s office said. “Investigators opened the back of the vehicle and located the packages of meth hidden in a shipment of blackberries.”
300 kilos of meth were found in the truck, with an estimated street value of $22.5 million, according to the sheriff’s office.
The driver of the truck was not with the vehicle at the time. Investigators later identified him as Gerardo Solorio-Alvarado, age 44, and arrested him at his home on Browns Bridge Road. Solorio-Alvarado is reportedly a Mexican native who was living in Gainesville at the time. His immigration status is not known at this time, but an immigration hold was placed on him by authorities.
Solorio-Alvarado is being held in the Hall County Jail without bond on a charge of trafficking meth.
Meanwhile, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) both issued statements Monday afternoon regarding both the Hall County investigation and a similar meth bust that happened the same day in Atlanta. That bust reportedly also involved a refrigerated box truck of blackberries, with more than 400 kilos of meth being found there and two more people being arrested.
The cases are believed to be connected, with the investigation ongoing. Hall County Sheriff Gerald Couch issued a statement regarding the incident.
“I know it’s disturbing to the public to realize such large amounts of illegal drugs are being trafficked into our community, but I hope citizens take comfort in knowing the Hall County Sheriff’s Office has investigators who are dedicated to curbing drug activity,” Couch said. “I’m proud of their work, and I’m also thankful for our partnership with state and federal agents. We remain committed to stopping illegal narcotics activity on all levels in our county.”
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