Authorities foil marijuana drop at state prison

Published 8:00 am Saturday, July 26, 2025

An attempted marijuana smuggling operation into Baldwin State Prison near Milledgeville was foiled by local and state authorities July 13.

A man and a woman were arrested in the attempt, according to an incident report filed by Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Alex Rickey.

The suspects were identified as Willie B. Holmes Jr., 26, of the 4300 block of Ashland Drive, Macon; and Aretha Hearn, 37, of the 1100 block of Hamilton Road, LaGrange.

They were each charged with two counts of Violation of the Georgia Controlled Substances Act for possession of marijuana with intent to distribute.

After their arrest, they were taken to the Baldwin County Law Enforcement Center and jailed.

Rickey said in his report that he was dispatched to Baldwin State Prison on Laying Farm Road shortly before 10 a.m. to assist officers with the Milledgeville Police Department regarding a suspicious man carrying a bag while walking near the prison.

The deputy said when he arrived, he talked with a roving patrol officer with the Georgia Department of Corrections.

The GDC officer said she had seen a man walking along Carl Vinson Road toward the Ga. Route 29 bypass.

Ricky said while traveling along Carl Vinson Road, he spotted a man fitting the same description in the driveway of a residence.

“I exited my patrol car and made contact with the individual, who identified himself as Willie Holmes,” Rickey said in his report. “Holmes was sweating profusely and stated he was waiting for a female who had dropped him off and was expected to return. When questioned, Holmes said the contents in the white grocery bag he was carrying were for personal use and contained marijuana.”

The suspect later informed the deputy that he and the woman had swapped cellphones. Holmes said he did not know the woman’s name, but she was driving a maroon sedan.

Holmes was arrested and handcuffed.

Inside the white bag, Rickey said he discovered several baseball-sized packages wrapped in black duct tape containing suspected marijuana.

The GDC officer reportedly spotted a woman about 8:30 a.m. Sunday driving a maroon sedan, possibly a Toyota Camry, with no visible tag. The car was near the prison’s perimeter road.

“The female claimed she was searching for the correct prison for visitation before leaving toward Riverbend Correctional Facility,” Rickey said. 

The two prisons are located next door to each other.

A description of the car was later broadcast over law enforcement officers’ radios.

Later, Deputy Sgt. Samuel Robinson reported that he was behind the driver of a maroon Nissan Altima traveling without a tag. The car was traveling south along Carl Vinson Highway between Laying Farm Road and Carl Vinson Road.

Robinson stopped the car.

The driver of the car was identified as Hearn. She also had a passenger in the backseat of the car. The passenger was released after it was determined that he had nothing to do with what had been planned at the prison.

Hearn was asked if she had anything illegal in the car, and she gave consent to search the car, Rickey said.

“I advised her that Holmes, whom she had dropped off, had been detained and was in possession of contraband,” Rickey said.

The deputy said upon conducting a search of the car, Milledgeville Police Departnent Sgt. Tommy Puerto spotted an empty vacuumed-sealed bag sticking out of the center console along with a baseball-sized package wrapped in black duct tape on the passenger’s side floorboard.

“This was similar to the items found in Holmes’ possession,” Rickey said.