A Guitar Center store in Gwinnett County, Georgia has helped local police seize thousands of dollars of illegal drugs after discovering a sizable stash hidden inside an amplifier.
The combo amp looks to have been gutted to house the drugs, and act as cover for the shipment.
Brazenly, the dealers, who police are trying to track down, were shipping the illegal substance through the mail, only for the amp to end up at the musical equipment store, where it was thoroughly checked over.
When staff inspected the amp, they discovered cocaine and methamphetamine amounting to thousands of dollars stuffed inside.
It is believed the shipment was sent to Gwinnett County Guitar Center by mistake, with the dealers using the firm's boxes and listing the store as the shipment’s return address, to eliminate any suspicions.
Police say that the send address was “out of state,” and are thankful for the Guitar Center employees' intervention.
“In this case, we have employees who did exactly the right thing,” Sgt. Collin Flynn with the Gwinnett County Police told WSB reporters. He adds that “it's extremely rare that this happens at any business.”
It's believed the dealers have used the method before, only this time the shipment was sent to the return, rather than the send address, in a surprise to staff.
Police have reiterated it can typically intercept these packages and stop them from reaching their intended destinations.
In 2023, the Parcel Interdiction Team, which includes the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation among its ranks, recovered 4,500 lbs of drugs.
As Sgt. Flynn explains, that amounts to $70 million which had been sent through FedEx, or UPS, that officers were able to seize with the help of a canine.
A Guitar Center spokesperson says the company is cooperating with law enforcement, and there is not believed to be a connection between the store, its employees, and the drugs.
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