Law enforcement agents have arrested a Carrollton man suspected of being heavily involved in interstate marijuana trafficking.

Wallace Demetrious Thornton, 33, was arrested April 30 at O’Reilly Auto Parts on Bankhead Highway in Carrollton after receiving a shipment of 85 pounds of marijuana, probably sent from Arizona.

“He was getting large shipments of illegal narcotics through UPS and it was being delivered there at the auto parts place,” Carroll County Sheriff Terry Langley said.

Investigators believe Thornton received as much as 923 pounds of illegal drugs since mid-January, Langley said.

The Crime Suppression Unit of the Carroll County Sheriff’s Department, the Carrollton Police Department and the West Georgia Drug Task Force were involved in the arrest of Thornton.

The Crime Suppression Unit received a tip a couple of months ago that someone was receiving large shipments of drugs through UPS and began the investigation, he said. Inv. Telisha Gibson contacted UPS Security for assistance.

Last Wednesday, UPS called to report a suspicious delivery to O’Reilly Auto Parts and the unit, along with Mac Kenerly and police dog Rudy, investigated. One of the packages smelled strongly of marijuana.

“Rudy did give a positive alert,” Langley said. “The crime suppression unit obtained a search warrant.”

When the packages were searched, the officers found the marijuana, wrapped in bubble wrap inside the boxes, Langley said.

The packages were delivered as intended but in a “controlled delivery,” he said.

“The suspect, Mr. Thornton, signed for and received the packages and immediately began removing the packages from inside the store and placing them in the trunk of his personal vehicle,” Langley said.

He was arrested as he loaded them into the vehicle. Thornton was charged with criminal attempt trafficking marijuana.

The investigation is still ongoing as investigators try to piece together who shipped the package and how it was to be distributed, Langley said. The distance of the shipment complicates the investigation, but the office does have the cooperation of law officers in Arizona, he said.

“The possibility of other arrests is still pending,” Langley said. “We think this was a major marijuana trafficking operation here in our area.”

There have been large drug busts in the county before, but they’ve been mostly on the interstates, Langley said.

“They’re looking for different ways to smuggle and traffic and we’re on the interstate and on the roads looking for it and so sometimes they’ll try to use UPS or even the U.S. mail,” he said.