4 days ago
USDOJ says 3 Mexican nationals face charges from Cobb County meth lab bust
Three 'illegal aliens from Mexico' face charges following a methamphetamine lab bust in Cobb County. One is still on the run.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Juan Perez-Maldonado, Francisco Garcia Gomez and Filemon Hernandez-Jijon were charged after a federal operation on June 3.
Officials said Drug Enforcement Administration agents saw Hernandez-Jijon allegedly supply two kilograms of meth to a drug customer in Smyrna.
Then, they watched as Hernandez-Jijon go back and forth from a Marietta mobile home.
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DEA agents got a search warrant for the mobile home and found Perez-Maldonado and Garcia Gomez, while a third person ran from the scene.
Inside, agents found an active meth lab being used to convert liquid methamphetamine into a crystal-like form and at least 13 kilograms of what looked like the finished drug product, USDOJ said.
Agents also found two handguns, including one that was hidden in the tank of a toilet, as well as money remitter receipts with Garcia Gomez's and Hernandez-Jijon's names, according to the Justice Department.
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Outside, USDOJ said agents also found 'acetone, several empty coolers and other materials commonly used to produce crystallized methamphetamine.'
USDOJ said agents searched an apartment in Smyrna in connection to the investigation, finding a bag with a loaded Glock pistol, two loaded magazines for a firearm and identification for Perez-Maldonado inside of a baby's crib.
Also in the apartment, agents found a Springfield XD firearm and mechanical press used to turn powder into kilogram bricks, according to USDOJ.
As the investigation continued, agents found that Perez-Maldonado and Hernandez-Jijon had already been deported and removed from the United States earlier.
While Perez-Maldonado and Garcia Gomez appeared in court on Wednesday for charges of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, officials said Hernandez-Jijon is currently a fugitive. He faces a charge of possession of a firearm by an alien unlawfully present in the U.S., government officials said.
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