MAR 17, 2020
(COLUMBIA, SC) - March 17, 2020 - South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced today that a Greenville jury yesterday issued a guilty verdict against David M. Barajas for trafficking 400 grams or more of methamphetamine. The trial lasted six days after which the Honorable Perry Gravely sentenced Barajas to 30 years in prison and a $200,000 fine.
Barajas, 42, who was known by the nicknames “Chavo” and “Pelon”, was convicted of running a hub in Atlanta through which kilograms of methamphetamine were trafficked from Mexico through Texas into Atlanta and then throughout the state of South Carolina. Evidence was introduced that this organization was linked to the La Familia Michoacana cartel.
Barajas was indicted in the State Grand Jury narcotics case known as “Polar Express.” So far, this investigation has resulted in guilty pleas of 50 defendants, and two guilty verdicts after trial of defendants indicted in the case.
The South Carolina State Grand Jury case was investigated by the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office, the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office, the Department of Homeland Security Investigations, and the South Carolina Attorney General’s State Grand Jury Division. Senior Assistant Attorney General Joshua Underwood and State Grand Jury Division Chief Attorney S. Creighton Waters tried the case, with the assistance of Paralegal Jon Hollingsworth.
“This case is another great example of the State Grand Jury’s effectiveness and the partnership between law enforcement and the Attorney General’s Office to address multi-county drug trafficking,” Wilson said. “This sentence sends a strong message about the time in prison a drug trafficker will face if he participates in sending methamphetamine or any other drug to South Carolina – no matter what state in which he lives or is operating,” Wilson added.
For media inquiries please contact Robert Kittle, rkittle@scag.gov or 803-734-3670
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