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Kenneth Lee Greene, Randy Nathaniel Greene, Abbigayle Marie Owens and Donna Lee Hyatt are in custody.
(By Glenn Harbison, News-Observer) — An investigation that was started in Fannin County approximately 18 months ago resulted in four arrests, the seizure of 18 kilos of methamphetamine valued on the street at $5,760,001, and other property worth over $200,000.
Fannin County Sheriff Dane Kirby said, “All four of the suspects who are in custody either live in Fannin County or have ties here.”
According to arrest warrants, three suspects are charged in Gilmer County.
Kenneth Lee Greene, 54, of 105 New Testament Church Road, Blue Ridge, is charged with:
﹣ Felony, trafficking in methamphetamine or amphetamine;
﹣ Felony, possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute;
﹣ Felony, possession of marijuana; and,
﹣ Misdemeanor, possession of drug-related objects.
Randy Nathaniel Greene, 38, of 277 Ridge Road, Mineral Bluff, is charged with:
﹣ Felony, trafficking in methamphetamine or amphetamine;
﹣ Felony, possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute;
﹣ Misdemeanor, possession of marijuana; and,
﹣ Misdemeanor, possession of drug-related objects.
The third suspect charged in Gilmer County, Abbigayle Marie Owens, 19, of 106 Nantahala Lane, Blairsville, is charged with:
﹣ Felony, trafficking in methamphetamine or amphetamine;
﹣ Felony, possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute;
﹣ Misdemeanor, possession of marijuana; and,
﹣ Misdemeanor, possession of drug-related objects.
All were held without bond in the Gilmer County Detention Center pending a hearing in front of a Superior Court judge.
In Pickens County, Donna Lee Hyatt, 64, of 2068 Highway 53 East, is charged with:
﹣ Felony, trafficking in methamphetamine or amphetamine;
﹣ Two counts, felony, possession of firearm/knife during commission of a crime; and,
﹣ Misdemeanor, driving on a suspended license.
She was also held pending a hearing.
Kirby said investigators received information from a surveillance March 5.
Fannin County investigators, along with Gilmer County deputies and agents of the GBI Appalachian Regional Drug Enforcement Office and FBI Consauga Safe Streets Task Force, performed a traffic stop in the Whitepath Road area on Highway 515.
That traffic stop led to the seizure of three kilos of methamphetamine. Further investigation led to search warrants for the address listed as Hyatt’s in Pickens County, as well as a residence in Union County.
At the Pickens County residence, Kirby said 15 kilos of methamphetamine, approximately $20,000 in cash, two guns, a 2024 model 2500 Chevrolet pickup, a 2024 Haulmark Trailer and a Chervolet Camaro were all seized.
Taking part in that effort were Fannin County investigators, Pickens County deputies and agents from the Cherokee Multi Agency Narcotics Squad and the FBI task force.
Union County deputies conducted the search at the residence there, seizing a custom built, chopper-style motorcycle valued at approximately $40,000, Kirby said.
The $5,760,001 street value of the 18 kilograms, which is 39.6832 pounds, is determined by a Georgia Bureau of Investigation conversion that breaks the sale of the methamphetamines down by the individual dose.
The arrests and seizures, “Are what happens when drug operations are conducted appropriately using the multiple resources available to law enforcement agencies,” Kirby said.
The sheriff called the success of the lengthy investigation, “A prime example that drug investigations do not stop at the county line.”