Ohio Authorities Seize Nearly 45 Pounds of Fentanyl: ‘Weapon of Mass Destruction’

Authorities seized almost 45 pounds of illegal fentanyl in Montgomery County, Ohio, during the week of October 21.

On their Facebook page Tuesday, the Regional Agencies Narcotics & Gun Enforcement (R.A.N.G.E) stated that 3 suspects involved in the alleged drug trafficking scheme were also arrested.

Shamar Davis,31, Anthony Franklin, 30, and Grady Jackson, 37, of Dayton face charges of “Possession with Intent to Distribute 400 or more grams of Fentanyl and Felon in Possession of a Firearm,” according to the post.

In addition to the fentanyl, authorities also uncovered a suspected 3 pounds of methamphetamine, 1 pound of heroin, 3 firearms, and almost $30,000 in cash, according to NBC News.

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said the multi-million dollar drug haul could have devastated the surrounding area had it made its way into the community.

“The quantity of fentanyl in this case amounts to chemical warfare and a weapon of mass destruction,” he commented, adding that “I applaud the work of our task force and our law enforcement partners – this is an enormous amount of deadly drugs that will no longer be on our streets.”

Montgomery County Sheriff Rob Streck echoed Yost’s statement:

These illegal drugs ruin lives, destroys families, fuels violence, drives up property crime, and wrecks neighborhoods. Anyone associated with it—especially those who sell and traffic it—are doing violence to people and causing harm in our communities. We are proud of the teamwork on this investigation. With the help from our partner agencies, we were all able to take dangerous drug dealers off the streets.

Additional agencies involved in the investigation included the Miami Valley Bulk Smuggling Task Force and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Safe Street Task Force.

“Twenty-kilograms of fentanyl is enough to kill the entire population of Ohio, many times over,” said Homeland Security Investigations special agent Vance Callender.

“We stand ready to use every tool and resource at our disposal to attack and dismantle these organizations from the low-level dealers to the source of supply with our law enforcement partners.”