AUGUSTA, Ga. – Georgia detectives seized enough fentanyl to kill 3.5 million people after a two-year undercover investigation. According to WRDW-TV, authorities also arrested nearly 60 people and confiscated dozens of guns, hundreds of pounds of marijuana, 35 pounds of cocaine, nine vehicles, and even two houses.
The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office also told the TV station that the drugs they seized were as deadly as weapons of mass destruction
The investigation called “Operation No Loyalty” focused on the gang known as Trap Money. According to the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, gang members aren’t just drug dealers, but very dangerous people.
“These individuals have not only been responsible for narcotics offenses in our community but have also been involved in several violent crimes within the CSRA,” the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office told WRDW-TV.
Despite numerous arrests, two suspected ringleaders of the gang, Ellis and Joshua McDaniel, haven’t been captured. Joshua Brady McDaniel, 38, from Augusta faces charges of firearm possession as a convicted felon. Ellis McDaniel, 42, is charged with two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, along with one count of possession of a machine gun.
Investigators have finished two phases of the operation, but the third is still ongoing. Deputies say they expect additional arrests, charges, and state and federal indictments.