Five Mexican Nationals Face Federal Charges Following Seizure of over a Thousand Pounds of Methamphetamine

Atlanta - Wilber Castellanos Villazana, Yamilet Calixto Sotelo, Jorge Lorenzo Manzanarez, Esteban Jacobo-Suarez, and Damien Gomez-Guijarro, four of whom are illegal aliens from Mexico, appeared in federal court on charges of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, following the combined seizure of more than 1,000 pounds of methamphetamine last week from an apartment complex and single-family residence in unincorporated DeKalb County. DEA identified one of the primary traffickers as allegedly working on behalf of the violent Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación ("CJNG").

"Within just a few days, undercover investigations in the metro Atlanta area led to the seizure of more than half a ton of methamphetamine, the arrests of four illegal aliens allegedly responsible for distributing those deadly drugs, and the disruption of two drug trafficking rings," said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. "My office will continue to proudly partner with federal, state, and local crimefighters to protect the public and eliminate the scourge of drug trafficking."

"The CJNG cartel is a significant threat to public safety, public health, and the national security of the United States," said Robert J. Murphy, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Division. "DEA will target every level of their supply chain to disrupt and destroy their networks."

According to U.S. Attorney Hertzberg, the charges, and other information presented in court:

On September 15, 2025, Wilber Castellanos Villazana allegedly sold one kilogram of methamphetamine to a DEA undercover agent at an apartment complex in DeKalb County. Law enforcement thereafter saw Castellanos Villazana allegedly sell additional narcotics to two other people from an Acura vehicle.

The next day, agents observed Castellanos Villazana, Jorge Lorenzo Manzanarez, and Yamilet Calixto Sotelo leave an apartment at the complex, pull a collapsible wagon to a parked Acura, and move two large black trash bags from the wagon into the Acura. Law enforcement arrested the defendants and searched the car and apartment. Agents found approximately 22 kilograms of methamphetamine in the car trunk and approximately 309 kilograms of methamphetamine in the apartment.

One day later, on September 17, 2025, Esteban Jacobo-Suarez and Damien Gomez-Guijarro allegedly sold a kilogram of methamphetamine to an undercover agent at a gas station on the outskirts of Stone Mountain, Ga. After this transaction, agents followed Jacobo-Suarez and Gomez-Guijarro to a nearby residence.

The next day, after DEA scheduled a second undercover drug purchase, agents observed Jacobo-Suarez and Gomez-Guijarro leave the residence and place a black trash bag in the backseat of a car. A DeKalb County police officer stopped that car after Jacobo-Suarez and Gomez-Guijarro arrived at the designated meeting spot for the drug buy. Subsequent searches allegedly revealed 10 kilograms of methamphetamine in the car and approximately 131 kilograms of methamphetamine, one firearm, and approximately $12,000 cash in the residence.

On September 19, 2025, Wilber Castellanos Villazana, 38, Yamilet Calixto Sotelo 22, Jorge Lorenzo Manzanarez, 35, Esteban Jacobo-Suarez, 44, and Damien Gomez-Guijarro, 32, who are all citizens of Mexico, were charged with possession with the intent to distribute methamphetamine in federal criminal complaints. Castallanos Villazana, Calixto Sotelo, Lorenzo Manzanarez, and Jacobo-Suarez are illegal aliens. Jacobo-Suarez was previously deported from the United States twice.

Members of the public are reminded that the criminal complaints only contain charges. The defendants are presumed innocent of the charges, and it will be the government's burden to prove the defendants' guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

These cases are being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and Atlanta-Carolinas High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program, with valuable assistance provided by Homeland Security Investigations, the DeKalb County Police Department, and the Gwinnett County Sheriff's Office.

Assistant United States Attorney Michael Herskowitz is prosecuting the cases.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department's Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces and Project Safe Neighborhoods.

The U.S. Attorney's Office in Atlanta recommends parents and children learn about the dangers of drugs at the following web site: https://www.justthinktwice.gov.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney's Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6185. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia is https://http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.