Two highway stops last week yielded 31 pounds of powder and 100,000 fentanyl pills. Fentanyl is fueling a surging public health crisis in Oregon. Illicit fentanyl, a synthetic opioid, is 50 to 100 times more potent than heroin, cheaper and easier to manufacture and more addictive. It also carries a greater risk of overdose, especially for young people with no experience using opioids.

Last year, Oregon overdose deaths increased 41%, compared to a 16% increase nationwide, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. This coincides with a surge of illicit fentanyl in Oregon. Oregon peer recovery specialists report they are now responding to 40 to 50 nonfatal overdose reports per month. Opioid overdoses can be reversed with naloxone rescue kits, which the Save Lives Oregon Clearinghouse coalition provides free. Several bills were introduced to make available naloxone kits to schools and emergency personnel and limit their liability, but the Democrat leadership didn’t find it worthy of hearings.

On April 23, 2023, an Oregon State Police(OSP) Trooper out of the Salem Area Command stopped a vehicle for a traffic violation. While on the stop, the Trooper observed signs of criminal activity and subsequently asked for consent to search the vehicle. The driver denied consent but admitted to importing marijuana from California. The OSP K-9 Titan (pictured above) was deployed and alerted them to a large duffel bag in the trunk. An additional search of the vehicle revealed a large amount of various controlled substances.

• 51 lbs. of suspected methamphetamine
• 31 lbs. of suspected powder fentanyl
• 9 lbs. of suspected cocaine
• 2 lbs. of suspected heroin

Both occupants of the vehicle were detained, interviewed, and charged with federal drug charges and lodged at the Multnomah County Jail.

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

Two days prior, on April 21, 2023, a Trooper from the La Grande Area Command stopped a vehicle traveling westbound on Interstate 84 near La Grande, Oregon. While on the stop, the Trooper observed signs of criminal activity. A search of the vehicle was conducted which led to the seizure of approximately 100,000 Fentanyl pills, 3 Kilograms of Heroin and 1 Kilogram of Fentanyl Powder.

Both cases are being investigated jointly by the Oregon State Police and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). They are being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.


--Dollie Banner

Post Date: 2023-04-25 16:09:56

Last Update: 2023-04-25 17:29:21