Rosa Elena Rangel Pantoja, Dustin Burgess, and Berzain Leal Batrez have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in operating a large methamphetamine conversion and distribution organization.
“Methamphetamine production and distribution continues to pose a grave threat to public safety, especially when trafficked using the large-scale and international operation utilized by the defendants in this case,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “Thanks to the vigilance and investigative work of our law enforcement partners, this operation has been dismantled and these drug traffickers have been prosecuted for their crimes.”
“Driven by greed, these drug traffickers’ activities posed a significant threat to our communities, and to the lives of several children who lived in close proximity to this highly volatile clandestine lab,” said Robert J. Murphy, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Division. “The success of this investigation is proof that those destroying our communities with methamphetamine and other dangerous drugs will be held accountable.”
“While communities across our state continue to struggle with the ongoing drug crisis, there are criminal enterprises, like Rangel’s drug trafficking organization, whose sole purpose is to profit from addiction and suffering,” said, Mitchell Jackson, Supervisory Senior Resident Agent of FBI Atlanta’s Dalton office. “The FBI is committed to working with our federal, state, and local partners to shut down these dangerous organizations that pump poison into our neighborhoods.”
“These sentences reflect the consequences these defendants received for their destructive impact they caused on communities,” said Steven N. Schrank, Special Agent in Charge of HSI Atlanta that covers Georgia and Alabama. “HSI is committed to holding those accountable who distribute their poison into our communities.”
According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: From at least October 2021 until August 2022, Rosa Elena Rangel Pantoja (“Rangel”) led a drug trafficking organization (DTO) that manufactured crystal methamphetamine in Georgia. Members of the DTO transported liquid methamphetamine from Mexico to the Northern District of Georgia in the gas tanks of semi-trucks. The DTO members then pumped the liquid methamphetamine out of the semi-trucks and cooked it into crystal methamphetamine, using at least two clandestine laboratories to convert the methamphetamine.
In March 2022, law enforcement first began investigating the DTO when Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) agents were notified that a Hispanic female, later identified as Rangel, was purchasing large amounts of acetone, which is a critical component in converting liquid methamphetamine into crystal methamphetamine. Based on the substantial amount of acetone that was being purchased, agents suspected Rangel was supplying the acetone to a methamphetamine laboratory.
In August 2022, agents found one of the methamphetamine conversion laboratories in Canon, Georgia, after observing a semi-truck delivering liquid methamphetamine to the lab. A search warrant was executed and agents seized over 250 gallons of liquid methamphetamine and nearly 10 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine. Rangel rented the property where members of the DTO cooked the methamphetamine on the lower level of a barndominium, while she and her four children lived in the upper level of the same building. Agents also seized two firearms from Rangel’s bedroom.
In November 2022, agents found a second methamphetamine conversion laboratory in Austell, Georgia, after tracking Batrez’s movements to the Mexico border and back to Georgia. Agents later observed members of the DTO delivering liquid methamphetamine to the laboratory, and upon executing a search warrant, over 160 gallons of liquid methamphetamine and 75 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine was seized at that location.
After the seizures, further investigation revealed that Rangel had been working with a “boss” based in Mexico to run the operation, with whom she had regular communication. Rangel then relayed communications to other DTO members, including threats from the boss. Rangel was also responsible for paying other DTO members, as well as giving instructions on supplying the methamphetamine labs with the acetone needed for the conversion process.
U.S. District Judge William M. Ray, II sentenced the defendants in the case as follows:
Rosa Rangel, 40, of Canon, Georgia, was sentenced to 15 years in prison followed by five years of supervised release. Rangel was convicted of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine on November 6, 2023, after she pleaded guilty.
Dustin Burgess, 36, of Ellijay, Georgia, was sentenced to 13 years in prison followed by five years of supervised release. Burgess was convicted of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine on October 5, 2023, after he pleaded guilty.
Berzain Leal Batrez, 44, of Chicago, Illinois, was sentenced to seven years, 11 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release. Batrez was convicted of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine on October 5, 2023, after he pleaded guilty.
Judge Ray is also scheduled to sentence two other defendants in the case, Martha Karina Rangel-Pantoja, 42, of Ellijay, Georgia on January 13, 2025, and Uriel Plancarte Mendoza, 31 of Canon, Georgia on March 21, 2025.
This case is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Homeland Security Investigations, with valuable assistance provided by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Georgia State Patrol, Bartow County Sherriff’s Office, Calhoun Police Department, Cherokee County, North Carolina Sheriff’s Office, Pickens County Sheriff’s Office, Gilmer County Sheriff’s Office, Fannin County Sheriff’s Office, Murray County Sheriff’s Office, Dalton Police Department, Chatsworth Police Department, Gilmer County Homeland Security Agency, and Tennessee 10th Judicial District Drug Task Force.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cal Leipold and Bethany L. Rupert are prosecuting the case.
