Drug suspects from Athens arrested in Walton Co

Four suspects are in custody and more arrests are anticipated in what drug agents say was a "rolling pill lab." Walton County sheriff’s deputies made the arrests of the Athens-area men, identified this morning as Austin Marshall, Jakob Sullins, Nicholas Felker, and Timothy Ballard. Investigators said two of the suspects were college students. Walton County Sheriff Joe Chapman says the suspects had a press that could produce 16,000 pills of opioids per hour.

A deputy on patrol discovered the pill lab after he spotted a U-Haul truck and trailer backed into the wooded area near Jack’s Creek Road.

“There’s an old barn backed into the wooded area and we believe they were going to try to set it up inside that barn,” Sheriff Chapman said.

Investigators believe the suspects bought the pill press on the dark web.

“A lot of people are coming from surrounding counties thinking we're a rural county and they’re possibly not going to be caught, but they’re mistaken if they believe that,” Chapman said.

Agents from the Drug Enforcement Agency were called in to assist in the cleanup.