West Metro Regional Drug Enforcement Office (WMRDEO)
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s (GBI) West Metro Regional Drug Enforcement Office (WMRDEO) is designed to combat illegal narcotics activity in the West Georgia and Metro Atlanta areas. It is a one-of-a-kind work unit that combines assets from the GBI with assets from local law enforcement authorities to create the State of Georgia’s only State and Local Drug Task Force. The unit’s goal is to provide a comprehensive effort to eliminate the utilization and influence of illegal narcotics and to reduce the incidents of drug-related violent crime in a twenty-two county area of Georgia. WMRDEO is comprised of the following agencies:
- Georgia Bureau of Investigation
- Atlanta Police Department
- Carrollton Police Department
- Villa Rica Police Department
- LaGrange Police Department
- Bowdon Police Department
- Carroll County Sheriff’s Office
- Meriwether County Sheriff’s Office
- Heard County Sheriff’s Office
- Fulton County Police Department
- Coweta Judicial Circuit’s District Attorney’s Office
The unit essentially functions as a hybrid of a traditional GBI Regional Drug Enforcement Office and a Multi-Jurisdictional Drug Task Force. During its 36-month period of operation (through July 2011), the WMRDEO unit has opened 849 criminal cases, seized over $83 million in illicit narcotics, and arrested 612 persons for violation of the Georgia Controlled Substances Act. WMRDEO is funded in part through Byrne Justice Assistance Grants that are awarded through the Georgia Criminal Justice Coordinating Council. Additional funding is provided through each member's Law Enforcement Agency.