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Busted: Drone carrying Meta glasses, Play Station to prison
Butts County deputies seized a drone carrying illegal contraband in a traffic stop along Interstate 75. Seized items included ecstasy, marijuana, tobacco, cellphones, Meta sunglasses, a PlayStation gaming system, clothing, and knives. Our Doug Evans spoke with Sheriff Gary Long about the bust.
BUTTS COUNTY, Ga. - Deputies in Butts County seized illegal drugs, weapons, and a large drone during a traffic stop on Interstate 75 Monday evening, stopping a suspected air-drop smuggling attempt into a state prison facility.
Butts County drone interception
What we know:
Sgt. Dalton Nunn pulled over a car along Interstate 75 Monday evening. Inside the vehicle, deputies found a large drone along with Ecstasy, pot, tobacco, knives, cellphones, and Meta sunglasses meant to be dropped over state prison walls.
Deputies arrested Jeremiah Elliott and Julian Agosto following the traffic stop. Both men were charged with trafficking in Ecstasy and other drug offenses, as well as conspiracy to commit items by prohibited inmates.
Georgia State Prison System
What we don't know:
Officials have not specified which exact state prison facility was the intended target for the drone delivery, though Butts County houses one of Georgia's largest prisons and death row.
Jeremiah Elliott and Julian Agosto face drug trafficking and conspiracy charges after Butts County deputies intercepted a large drone packed with Ecstasy, weapons, and smart glasses intended for a state prison air-drop delivery during a traffic stop …
Sheriff Gary Long statement
What they're saying:
Sheriff Gary Long described prison contraband as the primary currency for gangs operating behind bars in Georgia facilities.
"We're sending people to prison supposedly to rehabilitate them. But ultimately, what we have is we have the state's largest taxpayer-funded recruitment center for gangs," Long said.
Long called on political candidates running for office in November to prioritize prison security and address the root causes of crime.
"You know, here we are in election season, and everybody wants to put an undertone on public safety, but nobody wants to talk about the root cause. And the root calls today isn't sitting in our communities, Doug, it's sitting in our prison systems. It has to be fixed," Long said.
Interstate 75 smuggling patrols
Local perspective:
Sgt. Nunn noted that contraband delivery attempts along the highway represent an ongoing challenge for local law enforcement.
"There is so much that it's almost, I would say, for the one stop that we got the other night, I would there was probably seven or eight more that drove by that never got stopped and made it to a prison," Nunn said.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from Butts County Sheriff Gary Long, who provided statements on prison contraband and state gang activity, as well as Sgt. Dalton Nunn, who detailed the Interstate 75 traffic stop.