Man convicted in meth-laced pills conspiracy

TYLER – Our news partners at KETK report a Cherokee County man pleaded guilty in federal court on Tuesday and is awaiting sentencing for counterfeit pill manufacturing and conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine-laced pills. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, 45-year-old Robert Martin, of Alto, conspired with others to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of a mixture containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine.

Authorities say Martin set up a rotary tablet pill press on his property in order to press out hundreds of thousands of counterfeit pills then distribute them throughout the U.S. According to information presented in court, he also recruited and supplied wholesale and mid-level distributors.

Back in July of 2023, federal and state law enforcement executed a serach warrant for Martin’s property. During the search, they found:

five firearms
five rotary pill presses
111 grams of meth
more than 7,600 grams of meth in powder form
more than 29,000 meth-laced pills

According to Cherokee County Sheriff Brent Dickson, Martin’s arrest was made after a two-month-long investigation.