CLASSIC CITY NEWS

By Joe Johnson A known drug dealer was arrested last weekend after having been seen making a deal and then leading police on a high speed chase. Athens police said they had 31-year-old Taylor Samuel Jennings under surveillance on the night of November 4th when he made an apparent drug transaction at a gas station on North Avenue. When officers attempted the make a traffic stop on his car, Jennings ncreased his speed and made several turns in an attempt to lose his tail. But

By Joe Johnson Police recently went to Howard Johnson on West Broad Street looking for a Watkinsville man who was wanted on drug charges in Oconee County. Management gave them a key card for the room being rented by Joseph Materne, but before going in they knocked and the room suddenly went quiet and officers could hear sounds of people inside trying to hide evidence of drug possession and use. Upon entering the room the officers noticed that it “was shrouded in a cloud of sm

The following has been released by the United States Department of Justice ATHENS, Ga. – A dozen defendants involved in a major methamphetamine ring operating between Mexico and a conversion site in Monroe, Georgia, responsible for converting and distributing thousands of kilograms of methamphetamine shipped in from Mexico and hidden in boxes of jalapeños, are being held accountable for their crimes at the federal level in an Operation Take Back America investigation. “This O

By Joe Johnson Whitney Dustin Beck was arrested in the afternoon of October 25th after he chased a University of Georgia student while wielding a knife on the North Oconee River Greenway. The 55-year-old homeless man had a crack pipe and open whiskey bottle when police located him. The incident was at around 3:20 p.m. when the 20-year-old student was walking on the trail between Inglewood and Old Winterville roads when Beck accosted and began chasing him while swinging a knif

Federal authorities have seized more than 325 pounds of methamphetamine from a Norcross storage facility, the Department of Justice announced, Drug Enforcement Administration agents had Mexican national Marco Cueto-Rosales under surveillance when they saw him go into into the storage unit and move items around in plastic bins and trash bags. A K9 unit from the Gwinnett County Police Department later detected the scent of narcotics, leading to a federal search warrant and the

The following was released by the Gwinnett County Police Department Doraville, Ga., Nov. 6, 2025) – Gwinnett County Police Uniform Officers make a significant arrest during stolen trailer investigation. On October 30, 2025, the Gwinnett County Police Department received a report of a stolen trailer out of Norcross. Uniform Officers from the West Precinct utilized Flock license plate readers to determine the trailer, after being stolen, had been attached to a vehicle associate

By Joe Johnson A pair of drug dealers were arrested on October 9th when police raided a home in northern Athens. Dwight Howard Moreland, 57, and Vernon Demetre Lester, 54, were each charged with selling heroin possessing crack cocaine with the intent to distribute and several related crimes in connection with the execution of a search warrant at 251 Lombardy Circle by the Northeast Georgia Regional Drug Task Force. Superior Court records show that both men have felonious crim

By Joe Johnson Monika Patel, 31, of Oglethorpe Avenue, was recently arrested after creating a scene at her job in the downtown Waffle House on Clayton Street. The incident happened at about 8:15 p.m. on October 10th, when a supervisor called 911 to report a disorderly person, as Patel had been trying to pick fights with other employees and became enraged when the manager told her to leave and go home. Police arrived to hear Patel screaming “Fuck so loudly it caused her voice

By Joe Johnson Ricky Jerome Jernigan, 68, of Fairview Street was indicted this week for severely injuring a woman last month when he struck her with the head with a shovel. The incident happened on the night of September 9th when, police said, the victim was smoking crack and drinking at Jernigan’s home. She told the police that when her host tried to have sex she tried to leave but Jernigan followed her out the door and struck her in the back of her head with the shovel. A w

By Joe Johnson Jamie Lamar Terrell, 45, of Smokey Road, was indicted this week by an Athens-Clarke County grand jury for trafficking methamphetamine and other alleged crimes. The indictment stems from his arrest in July when, police said, a search of his home found over 28 grams of methamphetamine and 20 bags of fentanyl that were prepared for distribution. In addition to meth trafficking he was charged with possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and possession with in

By Joe Johnson Curioke Dante Hyche, 37, of East Carver Drive, was arrested on October 3rd after he was seen allegedly selling drugs. Officers with the Athens-Clarke County Police Department’s Gang Unit were patrolling a neighborhood in east Athens when they spotted Hyche in the parking lot of Vine East Apartments. They were aware that he was free on bail from his arrest on drug charges last month, and so they began to conduct surveillance. The officers accessed a video feed o

By Joe Johnson Jasmine Alexandria Peters, 29, of Covington, was indicted Tuesday for allegedly trafficking ecstasy. The indictment stems from her arrest in April during a traffic stop for driving a car with a broken taillight on and leading police on a vehicle pursuit during which she tossed a bag of drugs from her car. Peters is charged in the indictment with both trafficking ecstasy and littering. The incident for which Peters was indicted occurred early in the morning of A

By Joe Johnson A homeless man died from a fentanyl overdose Monday morning in the woods of northern Athens. According to police, it was the second time the 41-year-old man had overdosed within a day. Police said that officers responded shortly after midnight to an encampment off Old Hull Road across from Athens Technical College where CPR on the man was already in progress. They were told by his girlfriend that he had overdosed on fentanyl earlier in the day and that he had o

By Joe Johnson A man was recently arrested after his SUV was stopped by police for trying to use an exit ramp to enter the Athens Perimeter. The vehicle was searched after drug paraphernalia was seen in plain view and police said they found meth, crack cocaine, and an open bottle of Jack Daniels whiskey. They also learned that that 41-year-old Garris Trippe Jones III of Eatonton was in violation of bond conditions from a domestic violence arrest involving his passenger, a 44-

By Joe Johnson Dana Leighann Burns, 41, of Toccoa, was arrested on September 23rd for allegedly driving under the influence of fentanyl and methamphetamine. A police officer reported that he pulled over the woman’s car on Old West Broad Street after seeing it without taillights and being driven erratically. He further noted that Burns had failed to immediately stop after activating his lights and siren. Burns reportedly told the officer that she realized that she had swerved

By Joe Johnson Andrew Lee Ellison, 40, of Westchester Circle, was indicted on Tuesday by an Athens-Clarke County grand jury on numerous...

By Joe Johnson If his roommate hadn’t been caught driving without a license reputed gang leader Kevin Castro might not be sitting in...

By Joe Johnson A 40-year-old homeless man was arrested on the afternoon of September 4th after he was found trespassing in the pool area...

By Joe Johnson A man who was wanted by the Barrow County Sheriff’s Office was arrested in Athens after he was found passed out in a car...

The following was released this afternoon by the Gwinnett County Police Department dated: Gwinnett County, Ga., September 16, 2025) – In...