FLORIDA – A Georgia man has pleaded guilty to his role in a methamphetamine distribution conspiracy that reportedly led to the transportation of the drug to Florida in laundry detergent boxes, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida has announced.
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According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office (USAO), Jose Javier Galvan, 52, of Atlanta, Ga., has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. Galvan faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
According to the plea agreement, in July and August 2021, Galvan and others conspired to distribute kilogram quantities of high-purity methamphetamine from Guadalajara, Mexico, to Atlanta and Tampa.
Galvan reportedly drove from Atlanta to Tampa to plan for the distribution of the methamphetamine. He agreed to sell several kilograms of methamphetamine for approximately $5,700, with more quantities of the drug to follow by deliveries from his drug courier.
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The drug courier allegedly drove from Atlanta to Plant City and delivered 1.89 kilograms of high-purity methamphetamine imported from Mexico. The methamphetamine was transported in a bright green laundry detergent box, the USAO said.
According to the plea agreement, on or about July 22, 2021, Galvan again traveled from Atlanta to Temple Terrace, Florida, to collect more than $11,000 in drug proceeds owed to him for the methamphetamine delivery. The following week, Galvan and a coconspirator reportedly agreed to deliver another multi-kilogram package of methamphetamine into the Middle District of Florida from the Atlanta area.
“The drug courier drove from Atlanta with methamphetamine contained in two bright orange laundry detergent boxes. Law enforcement stopped the vehicle in Lowndes County, Georgia. During the traffic stop, the officers discovered the laundry detergent boxes containing an aggregate amount of approximately 4.9 kilograms of methamphetamine,” the USAO said in its statement.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Winter Haven Police Department, the Plant City Police Department, and the Lowndes County (Georgia) Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David W.A. Chee.
