Decatur County Sheriff's investigators make big bust - WALB.com, Albany News, Weather, Sports

Decatur County Sheriff's investigators make big bust

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BAINBRIDGE, GA (WALB) -

By LeiLani Golden - bio | email

DECATUR COUNTY, GA (WALB) – Decatur County Sheriff's investigators have made one of their biggest drug busts in recent history.

They seized 35 pounds of marijuana and $8,000 in cash Tuesday night.

Investigators say the pot would have been distributed throughout south Georgia if not for the sting.

Most drug busts in Decatur County usually result in small amounts of seized narcotics. But Tuesday night, investigators hauled in seventy-thousand dollars worth of marijuana in a single bust.

"This is not a normal bust," explains Captain Chip Nix with the Decatur County Sheriff's Office. "It is a trafficking amount of marijuana. Most street sales that we see, we may seize a pound or less. But to have 35 pounds of marijuana, it's a pretty significant bust."

Working off a tip from a bust in Miller County earlier that day, investigators set up surveillance on a spot they believed the drugs were being stored.

"We observed the main bad guy, Rodney Powell, come to the vehicle and transfer it to another vehicle being driven by his goddaughter Marquita Washington," says Nix. "Once they transferred the dope and went to drive off, we made a traffic stop on them."

And this wasn't the first time investigators say Powell and Washington trafficked marijuana.

"According to the suspect's delivery schedule. 7,000 pounds were distributed in Bainbridge and Decatur, Georgia," points out Major Wendell Cofer. "It's sad. It's depressing.To know that's how much has gotten through and sold here."

Investigators say at least half of this marijuana would have ended up in teenagers' hands.

"A lot of times they don't look at marijuana as being that dangerous," says Nix. "But we consider it one of the most dangerous because it is a gateway drug. It opens the door to cocaine and other synthetic drugs and prescription abuse."

But they're hoping this bust closed that door, at least for the time being.

Decatur County Sheriff's investigators plan to launch several spin off investigations from this bust. They expect to make as many as ten subsequent arrests based on information from this case.

 
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