Alleged cartel leader indicted in Atlanta after ocean plane crash
A Bahamian man faces federal drug trafficking charges in Atlanta after U.S. officials rescued him from an Atlantic Ocean plane crash, federal prosecutors announced. Federal authorities unsealed an indictment charging 58-year-old Jonathan Eric Gardiner, also known as "Player," with conspiracy to import controlled substances and conspiracy to distribute them, according to state prosecutors. Gardiner allegedly operated from The Bahamas, supplying massive cocaine shipments to organizations in the Northern District of Georgia from approximately December 2022 to May 2026. Prosecutors stated Gardiner could distribute over 2,000 kilograms of cocaine at a time, which local networks then spread across metro Atlanta and into multiple states.Federal agents arrested Gardiner after the U.S. Coast Guard rescued him and ten other passengers from the Atlantic Ocean when their private plane crashed off the Florida coast in May.
Scoop News DeskAtlanta, Georgia ยท Published Updated
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More than 20 alleged members of his distribution organization were previously charged, with 13 pleading guilty.Officials have not yet confirmed the specific date Gardiner will appear in the Northern District of Georgia, as he is currently in custody awaiting trial on additional drug charges in the Southern District of New York. Authorities have not disclosed the exact cause of the private plane crash in the Atlantic Ocean.
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A Bahamian man faces federal drug trafficking charges in Atlanta after U.S. officials rescued him from an Atlantic Ocean plane crash, federal prosecutors announced. Federal authorities unsealed an indictment charging 58-year-old Jonathan Eric Gardiner, also known as "Player," with conspiracy to import controlled substances and conspiracy to distribute them, according to state prosecutors. Gardiner allegedly operated from The Bahamas, supplying massive cocaine shipments to organizations in the Northern District of Georgia from approximately December 2022 to May 2026. Prosecutors stated Gardiner could distribute over 2,000 kilograms of cocaine at a time, which local networks then spread across metro Atlanta and into multiple states.Federal agents arrested Gardiner after the U.S. Coast Guard rescued him and ten other passengers from the Atlantic Ocean when their private plane crashed off the Florida coast in May.
