ATLANTA, Georgia (Atlanta News First) – Hall County officials seized thousands of dollars worth of guns, cash and illegal drugs from a Gainesville man’s home Monday shortly after he led them on a chase, according to the sheriff’s office.
The Hall County Sheriff’s Office said officers observed a westbound pickup truck crossing the double yellow line on Mountain View Road in Gainesville around 1 a.m. Monday.
Officers reportedly followed the truck but lost sight of it on Tumbling Creek Road before finding it in a parking lot in the 2000 block of West Park Drive.
The sheriff’s office said officers tried to talk to the driver and asked him to roll down his window, but he drove away instead. Officers pursued the truck and lost sight of it again when they were traveling near Ga. 13/Atlanta Highway and Thurmon Tanner Parkway.
The sheriff’s office said officers identified the driver as 22-year-old Rodolfo Rodriguez-Puentes of Gainesville and obtained arrest warrants for the following traffic offenses:
- Fleeing/attempting to flee from a police officer (serious crime)
- Driving under the influence of alcohol (offense)
- Speeding (offense)
- Overtaking in a no-overtaking zone (offense)
- Reckless driving (misdemeanor)
- Crossing the Gore (Offense)
- Failure to maintain lane (offense)
Later that morning, officers served search warrants at Rodriguez-Puentes’ home in the 2000 block of South Oaks Drive. They said another resident of the home led them to the garage, where they found the pickup truck “and a bag of marijuana on a shelf in plain sight.”
They arrested Rodriguez-Puentes for the traffic offenses and obtained a search warrant for the house. During the search, they seized about 440 grams – more than 1,700 tablets – of alprazolam and 327 THC cartridges, each containing about 2,000 mg of THC liquid.
Investigators said they also seized more than 1,800 grams of marijuana, four firearms and about $7,000 in cash.
According to the sheriff’s office, the total street value of the drugs is approximately $61,900.
Investigators obtained additional arrest warrants against Rodriguez-Puentes on Tuesday in connection with the drugs and weapons. The charges are:
- Possession of Schedule IV drugs with intent to distribute (felony)
- Possession of Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) oil with intent to distribute (felony)
- Possession of marijuana with intent to resell (felony)
- Possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime (felony)
The sheriff’s office said Rodriguez-Puentes is being held without bail in the Hall County Jail.
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