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FBI: USPS workers agreed to deliver cocaine through the mail

More than a dozen United States Postal Service workers were arrested for allegedly running a drug distribution operation.

ATLANTA -- More than a dozen United States Postal Service workers are facing charges after allegedly running a drug distribution operation.

The FBI, postal inspectors and local police officers coordinated the roundup that happened around 10:00 Wednesday morning.

Sixteen employees working in post offices across metro Atlanta were charged with accepting bribes to deliver packages of kilogram-quantities of cocaine in a wide-reaching sting operation, authorities said.

The FBI began the investigation more than 18 months ago after getting a tip that drug dealers were running drugs through the mail system.

Investigators put a fake drug dealer on the streets to see just how many mail carriers would sign up.

In exchange for the bribe payments, these workers allegedly agreed to provide special addresses to the drug trafficker to ship packages of cocaine. Investigators said the defendants then intercepted the packages and delivered them to the drug trafficker, who happened to be working with law enforcement. The packages they delivered actually contained fake drugs, investigators said.

Some of the postal workers allegedly recruited additional USPS employees to join the criminal scheme, and accepted additional money for drug packages delivered by their recruits.

U.S. Attorney John Horn called the allegations described in the federal indictment disturbing, "The defendants in this case allegedly sold that trust out to someone they knew to be a drug dealer, and simply for cash in their pockets they were willing to endanger themselves and the residents on their routes and bring harmful drugs into the community."

The USPS employees arrested as follows:

• Cydra Rochelle Alexander, 31, of Riverdale, Georgia, a letter carrier assigned to the Ralph McGill Carrier Annex and Central City Branch of the Atlanta Post Office.
• Aurthamis O. Burch, a/k/a Tank, 46, of Snellville, Georgia, a letter carrier assigned to the Doraville Post Office.
• Kawana Rashun Champion, 35, of Jonesboro, Georgia, a clerk assigned to the North Springs Branch of the Sandy Springs Post Office and Central City Branch of the Atlanta Post Office.
• Eleanor Lolita Golden, a/k/a Eleanor Johnson, 54, of East Point, Georgia, a letter carrier assigned to the West End Branch of the Atlanta Post Office.
• Tonie Harris, 54, of Decatur, Georgia, a letter carrier assigned to the Sandy Springs Post Office.
• Leea Janel Holt, 38, of Atlanta, Georgia, a letter carrier assigned to the Old National Branch of the Riverdale Post Office.
• Clifton Curtis Lee, a/k/a Cliff, 41, of Lithonia, Georgia, a letter carrier assigned to the Sandy Springs Post Office.
• Shakeed Anilah Magee, 40, of College Park, Georgia, a letter carrier assigned to the West End Branch of the Atlanta Post Office.
• Horace Manson, 40, of Roswell, Georgia, a letter carrier assigned to the West End Branch of the Atlanta Post Office.
• Olivia Marita Moore, 25, of Atlanta, Georgia, a letter carrier assigned to the Old National Branch of the Riverdale Post Office.
• Eddie Nash, 63, of Decatur, Georgia, a letter carrier assigned to the West End Branch of the Atlanta Post Office.
• Jeffrey A. Pearson, 59, of Austell, Georgia, a letter carrier assigned to the Decatur Post Office.
• Rodney Antwain Salter, 33, of Jonesboro, Georgia, a letter carrier assigned to the Martech Branch of the Atlanta Post Office.
• Frank Webb, 40, of Lithonia, Georgia, a letter carrier assigned to the Central City Branch of the Atlanta Post Office.
• Katrina Nicole Wilson, a/k/a Trina, 38, of Fairburn, Georgia, a letter carrier assigned to the West End Branch of the Atlanta Post Office.
• Harvel Donta Young, a/k/a Dante, 39, of Atlanta, Georgia, a letter carrier assigned to the Westside Annex Branch of the Marietta Post Office.

The defendants will have an arraignment hearing Wednesday afternoon before a federal judge. 11Alive's Kaitlyn Ross is at the court and will have the latest information on 11Alive at Five..

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