Six indictments and two criminal complaints have been returned in a large drug trafficking and firearms conspiracy case in North Georgia. Several of the people charged appeared in federal court in Gainesville today, and many will have bond hearings later this week or next week.
This morning, federal agents raided the clubhouses of two Atlanta-area motorcycle clubs. The raids occurred at buildings in Gwinnett and southern Fulton Counties affiliated with the Hoodlums Motorcycle Club and Outlaw Motorcycle Club, respectively. At both locations, multiple individuals were arrested and a substantial quantity of alleged evidence was seized.
The Department of Justice has confirmed that the raids are part of a large drug and weapons investigation and that 24 people have been indicted thus far. Those indicted face cocaine and methamphetamine, weapons, and obstruction charges.
Conspiracy charges of almost any sort are extremely treacherous for a defendant. Prosecutors will charge conspiracies whenever possible to permit them to charge individuals not only with illegal acts they believe the individual committed, but also the acts of many others who were involved in similar illegal activity.
In this case, we think it will be difficult for the government to tie all of these people to one conspiracy, but a lot will depend on what these people do now that they are charged. The government expects (and hopes) that many will want to “cooperate” and provide information about others allegedly involved in this case. In our experience, the Sentencing Guidelines for cases like this can be extraordinarily high, depending on the quantity of drugs and firearms involved.
