On Friday, August 19, 2016, the GBI Major Theft Unit and the Bartow County Sheriff’s Office announced the arrest of three individuals responsible for the theft of a multi-million dollar shipment of hydrocodone pills from a truck stop in Bartow County, Georgia in July of 2014. The arrests culminated a two-year investigation into the Cargo Theft from the Pilot Truck Stop in Cartersville, GA.
On Thursday, August 18, 2016, Filipe Hurtado Cruz of Colorado Springs, Colorado was arrested in Colorado Springs by agents from the GBI with the assistance of agents from the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Colorado Springs Police Department. Yosvani Cordero and Yoandy Linares Machado were already in custody in Dalton, Georgia on unrelated cargo theft charges.
The theft occurred in Cartersville, Georgia at the Pilot Travel Center on 968 Cass White Road on July 22, 2014. The shipment of hydrocodone was being transported through Georgia on Interstate 75. The three men followed the truck driver and eventually stole the truck and trailer. The investigation led Bartow County Sheriff Deputies and Georgia State Patrol Troopers to the location of the trailer. When officers attempted to stop the truck, a vehicle pursuit ensued. The driver of the truck eventually stopped in an industrial park, abandoned the cargo, and fled on foot. When investigators searched the truck, they found multiple GPS jamming devices along with other evidence which later connected the men to the theft.
Cruz, Cordero, and Machado were each charged with three counts of Cargo Theft, Trafficking in Controlled Substances, Fleeing and Attempting to Elude Police, and Possession of Tools for the Commission of a Crime.
Investigators believe others were involved and expect to make more arrests in the future. If you have information about this case, please call the GBI Major Theft Unit at 770-918-6772.
The GBI Major Theft Unit is located in Conyers, GA and serves the entire State of Georgia. The unit is comprised of members from the GBI and the Motor Carrier Compliance Division of the Department of Public Safety.