An Georgia man has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for his role in a scheme that used sham companies to import cocaine from Mexico and launder drug proceeds back to Mexico.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia says Carlos Salazar-Garcia, 37, of Atlanta, used fake produce companies connected to shipments containing nearly 200 pounds of cocaine.

Federal authorities say agents in Laredo, Texas, intercepted a shipment from Mexico in December 2022 containing 119 pounds of cocaine hidden among electronic transformers. The shipment was destined for a farmers market in Clayton County, Georgia, and investigators linked it to a sham produce company operated by Salazar-Garcia.

In November 2023, agents at the U.S.-Mexico border in McAllen, Texas, intercepted another shipment containing approximately 66 pounds of cocaine concealed among limes. Investigators said that shipment was also headed to a sham produce company operated by Salazar-Garcia.

Authorities say Salazar-Garcia and co-defendant Andrea Principe, 37, of Stone Mountain, also used a variety of financial transactions to launder more than $1 million in drug proceeds to Mexico.

Salazar-Garcia pleaded guilty on April 20, 2026, to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, cocaine importation and money laundering charges. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison followed by five years of supervised release.

Principe pleaded guilty June 30 to conspiracy to commit money laundering and is scheduled to be sentenced October 15.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Drug Enforcement Administration, with assistance from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.