Georgia Ellenwood Meth Lab Ringleader Sentenced to 16 Years 3 Months: Four Men Manufactured and Trafficked Over 770 Kilograms of Methamphetamine
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia announced on October 29 that Florencio Magana-Sarabia, 44, an illegal alien from Michoacán, Mexico, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones to 16 years and 3 months in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for his role in manufacturing and trafficking more than 770 kilograms of methamphetamine from a house in Ellenwood, Georgia. Three co-conspirators, also illegal aliens, were previously sentenced.
Magana-Sarabia pleaded guilty on July 28, 2026, to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg said the defendant and his accomplices amassed and distributed a staggering amount of deadly methamphetamine in a residential neighborhood, and that quick action by state and federal partners dismantled the operation.
The case began on October 20, 2023, when federal agents investigating drug activity at an Ellenwood residence saw several men loading boxes into a Toyota Tacoma and coordinated with the Georgia State Patrol on a traffic stop. Agents seized 134 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine from the driver, Luis Santiago Urrutia-Mata, and the passenger, Jose Luis Avalos-Menera.
A search of the residence, rented by Magana-Sarabia, uncovered a large clandestine methamphetamine conversion laboratory containing 260 kilograms of finished crystal methamphetamine and 100 gallons of still-liquid methamphetamine, along with three firearms. A third defendant, Erik Santana-Sanchez, was apprehended as he fled the laboratory, and the DEA determined he had assisted in manufacturing methamphetamine at the house.
The co-defendants were previously sentenced: Jose Avalos-Menera, 40, to 108 months; Luis Urrutia-Mata, 26, to 78 months; and Erik Santana-Sanchez, 39, to 78 months, each followed by supervised release. The Drug Enforcement Administration investigated the case with assistance from the Georgia State Patrol, Assistant U.S. Attorney Johnny Baer prosecuted, and the case is part of Operation Take Back America.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：冰毒晶体特写（资料图，非本案证物）。Psychonaught 摄，公共领域，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / A crystal of methamphetamine in close-up (file photo, not evidence in this case). Photo by Psychonaught, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
