Two men indicted for importing cocaine in Port of Savannah shipment

More than 45 pounds seized in container transported to Augusta

Two men have been charged in a four-count federal indictment for the June 2019 shipment of more than 45 pounds of cocaine through the Port of Savannah.

Jimmy Alexander Pujols, a/k/a “El Gallo,” 35, and Fausto Mendez Ramos, a/k/a “Rudy Reyes Polanco,” 40, are charged with Conspiracy to Import a Controlled Substance, Conspiracy with Intent to Distribute and to Distribute a Controlled Substance, Importation of a Controlled Substance, and Possession with Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance, said Bobby L. Christine, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia.

Conviction on the charges carries a sentence of 10 years to life in prison. There is no parole in the federal system.

In June, Agents from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), in conjunction with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from the Augusta Fire Department, seized packages containing 21.3 kilos of cocaine while serving a federal search warrant at an Augusta warehouse holding a shipping container that had been transported from the Port of Savannah. Pujols and Ramos were taken into custody.

An indictment contains only charges. Defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys E. Greg Gilluly Jr. and Marcela Mateo.