Liquid Meth Discovered in Tractor Trailer at I-85 Weigh Station

More testing is being done by the GBI Crime Lab on about 15 gallons of what is believed to be liquid meth confiscated during a routine inspection of a tractor-trailer at a weigh station on I-85 in Franklin County.

WLHR News spoke Wednesday with Captain John Cook with the Motor Carriers Compliance Division Region B in Franklin County.

“Thursday morning, February 16, 2023, at 8:45 am, a Motor Carrier Compliance Officer with the Georgia Department of Public Safety selected a truck for inspection on I- 85 North at the Northbound Weigh Station, in Franklin County,” he said. “While interviewing the driver, the Officer determined that the driver had a false report of duty status.”

Cook said there were several indicators that led the Officer to believe criminal activity was present.

“A Georgia State Patrol K-9 unit assisted, and the K-9 alerted on the cab of the commercial vehicle. A further search of the tractor-trailer was conducted which resulted in the discovery of six separate 2.5-gallon jugs filled with clear liquid inside the truck’s cab,” he said.

Investigators with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) arrived on the scene and assisted with the field testing.

“The liquid was field tested and had positive results for methamphetamine properties believed to be meth oil,” Cook said.

Both the driver and co-driver were arrested and charged with trafficking methamphetamine pending final results from the GBI crime lab.

The driver of the tractor-trailer is identified as Miguel Angles Rios-Cepeda. His passenger is identified as Juan Carlos Diaz Mendez.

Both were denied bond and are still in Franklin County Detention Center.

Days earlier, authorities in Hall County pulled over a pickup truck for a routine traffic violation and discovered that the gas cans in the truck bed contained 600 pounds of liquid meth.

Two people were also arrested in that case.

Cook said it’s not known if the two cases are related.