Georgia Charges Three More in Carfentanil Trafficking Case: Nine Defendants in All After 20 Pounds Seized
Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr announced on November 13 that his Gang Prosecution Unit has secured a superseding indictment charging three more defendants in a multistate drug trafficking operation in Chatham County, Georgia, bringing the total number of defendants in the case to nine.
The indictment alleges the group possessed and distributed narcotics including carfentanil, a synthetic opioid 10,000 times more potent than morphine and 100 times more potent than fentanyl. Law enforcement previously recovered 20 pounds of carfentanil in the case and continued the investigation, leading to the new indictment and additional drug and firearm seizures.
The three newly charged defendants are Omar Ledesma, 30, of Arizona; Leval Tyrone Pride, 50, of Pooler; and Travis Javonte Bright, 34, of Savannah. The six defendants first indicted in September 2026 include Edkes Hakeem Mitchell, who was already facing roughly 50 counts and now also faces charges of trafficking carfentanil and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.
Prosecutors allege eight of the defendants formed a criminal enterprise that procured carfentanil from the Phoenix, Arizona, area and marijuana from California and elsewhere for distribution in Chatham County, disguised financial transactions to pay suppliers, and used drug proceeds to support the Waters Ave Crew street gang. All eight face at least one count under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. A Chatham County grand jury returned the indictment on November 4. The charges are allegations to be decided by a court.
"If you're trafficking carfentanil, you're knowingly putting lives at risk, and we won't stand for it," Carr said. The case was investigated by the Chatham-Savannah Counter Narcotics Team and the Drug Enforcement Administration's Savannah district and Phoenix division offices, with assistance from the Gang Prosecution Unit.
(Source: Office of the Georgia Attorney General)
Source: Office of the Georgia Attorney General
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于 Atlanta 的佐治亚州议会大厦。DXR 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: The Georgia State Capitol in Atlanta. Photo by DXR, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
