About 30 pounds of liquid methamphetamine that was bound for Sandy Springs is believed to have originated with a Mexican cartel, Newnan police said.

Rafael De La Cruz and Abigail Valles of Laredo, Texas, were arrested in connection with Saturday’s seizure, police said. The suspects told police they were taking the drugs, which were found in 24 Lipton Green Tea bottles with Spanish labeling, to someone in Sandy Springs to sell for $5,000.

Police began watching the suspects’ car, which had a Texas license, in a Wal-Mart parking lot because it had been reported as suspicious, according to an incident report.

After police conducted a traffic stop, De La Cruz told them he had no license and that he and his wife had driven from Laredo, according to the report.

De La Cruz said he was trying to find a trash bin behind one of the stores in the area to get rid of the drugs because he thought he would be caught, police said. De La Cruz told police that the drugs came from the Sinaloa cartel in Mexico.

According to police, Valles said she and De La Cruz had been caught three times previously for drug trafficking. Both were charged with methamphetamine trafficking.

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