A Tennessee man who was arrested on multiple drug charges related to a massive methamphetamine bust at a Marietta stash house has been convicted on all counts.
Antonio Jamar Laster, 31, of Nashville, was arrested in October 2020 when state and federal law enforcement agents caught Laster and three others in the midst of a drug deal, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia Kurt R. Erskine said in a news release. Laster, who Erskine said is connected to the Gangster Disciples street gang, had more than $21,000 concealed inside a Wendy’s fast food bag meant to be exchanged for three kilograms of meth.
The drug bust took place in October 2020 when state and federal agents raided a single-family Marietta home that was being used for drug distribution and storage by people working with a notorious Mexican Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación, Erskine said. Agents watching the house saw multiple people leave to meet Laster with the meth.
As Laster and the drug couriers were being placed under arrest in Woodstock, agents were simultaneously raiding the stash house where they found more than 100 kilograms of crystal meth, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution previously reported. According to Erskine, the three men arrested at the drug deal alongside Laster all pleaded guilty in March to conspiring to possess methamphetamine with intent to distribute. Only Laster elected to go to trial.
Laster was convicted by a jury Thursday on two counts: conspiracy to possess a controlled substance with intent to distribute and attempted possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute. Laster served a previous prison sentence in Tennessee for aggravated robbery, Erskine said.
Laster is scheduled to be sentenced on Mar. 16, 2022.
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