Albany resident charged in major drug bust

ALBANY — The Albany Dougherty Drug Unit made a major drug bust over the weekend, seizing nearly half a kilo of cocaine and a pound of marijuana from Albany resident Edgar Martin Jr.’s Carver Street residence.

“Last weekend, drug agents went out to 516 Carver St. here in Albany and executed a search warrant and made contact with a black male, Edgar Martin Jr., born 4/16/1961,” ADDU Commander Maj. Prurince Dice said at a news conference Monday. “Upon entering the residence, agents searched and found cocaine, marijuana and cash.”

According to reports, ADDU agents seized 445.7 grams of cocaine, 165.6 grams of marijuana and $16,543 in cash. Martin has been charged with possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, trafficking cocaine, possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and possession of drug-related objects.

“The cocaine they found was over 445 grams, valued at $55,712,” Dice said. “The marijuana found was over 165 grams, valued at $4,900. Also, they found $16,000 worth of currency at this particular location. It was based on a collaborative effort of the team here at the unit who went out and conducted an investigation prior to serving the search warrant over a period of a couple of weeks, which landed the arrest of Mr. Martin.”

Dice described the bust as a big deal and part of a “continued effort” to rid the Albany community of drugs.

“This is by far a large deal here in Albany,” the drug unit commander said. “That’s almost half a kilo of cocaine, almost a pound or so of marijuana, and $16,000 in cash that was retrieved. This is a continued effort of our initiative to increase our investigation tactics and to get drug dealers off the streets around this holiday season.”

According to ADDU Assistant District Attorney Norris Lewis, after such a seizure is carried out, the drugs are destroyed and the money is confiscated.

“Asset forfeiture will be filed on the money,” Lewis said. “There will be a separate court case from the criminal case to determine whether or not it is subject to forfeiture. If it is subject to forfeiture, it will be awarded to the Albany Dougherty Drug Unit for lawful purposes as defined by O.C.G.A. 16-13-49. The drugs are destroyed, because they are contraband. They are usually physically burned at a very high temperature and turned into dust.”

According to Dice, more arrests are anticipated.

“We do anticipate more seizures, more arrests, and for lack of a better term, more doors getting kicked in because they want to possess this stuff illegally,” he said. “If you got it, we are going to come after it.”

So far this year, according to Dice, ADDU has seized more than $300,000 worth of drugs and more than $45,000 in cash.