“It’s extremely rare that this happens”: Guitar Center staff find thousands of dollars’ worth of drugs stashed inside guitar amp

Guitar Center logo on storefront
(Image credit: Valerie Macon/AFP via Getty Images)

Employees at a Guitar Center store in Lawrenceville, Georgia, found thousands of dollars’ worth of cocaine and methamphetamine stashed inside a guitar amp.

On July 17, the staff members opened what they thought was just another delivery box, only to discover the drug stash. It's believed that the amp was mistakenly delivered to the store.

According to Sgt. Collin Flynn of the Gwinnett County Police via WSB-TV, “In this case, we have employees that did the exact right thing. It's extremely rare that this happens at any business.”

The staff also told police that the box had a shipping address out of state. However, the Guitar Center location was listed as a return address, so the package was returned to the store.

Investigators believe the drug dealers involved in this case have conducted a similar operation before, due to the business logo and business return address attached to the box.

“Most of the time, police say a specialized unit seizes the drugs before they're ever delivered,” reports WSB-TV. However, this shipment seems to have slipped through the cracks.

A Guitar Center spokesperson confirmed the store is cooperating with law enforcement. Police haven't identified any employees as suspects, as they believe there is no connection between staff members and the drugs.

In other Guitar Center news, new CEO Gabe Dalporto recently detailed his plan to revitalize the brand, in part by prioritizing premium guitars.

Janelle Borg

Janelle is a staff writer at GuitarWorld.com. After a long stint in classical music, Janelle discovered the joys of playing guitar in dingy venues at the age of 13 and has never looked back. Janelle has written extensively about the intersection of music and technology, and how this is shaping the future of the music industry. She also had the pleasure of interviewing Dream Wife, K.Flay, Yīn Yīn, and Black Honey, among others. When she's not writing, you'll find her creating layers of delicious audio lasagna with her art-rock/psych-punk band ĠENN.