Global Courant 2023-04-13 06:19:57
Texas state troopers seized 3.1 million lethal doses of fentanyl this week during a single traffic check in the border town of Mission, Gov. Greg Abbott said.
The drugs, which have a street value of about $312,000, marked one of the largest seizures to date from Operation Lone Star, launched by Abbott in 2021 to crack down on crime in border communities.
Police detained Mario Reyna Cantu, a 39-year-old Mexican national, for a traffic violation while driving a black Cadillac SUV on Monday.
During the stop, a trooper discovered five bundles of a white powdery substance that tested positive for fentanyl at the scene, as well as in a State Department of Public Safety crime lab.
“Because of this single seizure, millions of lethal doses of fentanyl will not find their way into communities in our state, and actually our country, and millions of lives are potentially saved,” Steven McCraw, director of Texas DPS, said in a statement.
About 14 pounds of fentanyl with a street value of $312,000 was seized during a single traffic stop Monday in Mission, Texas. (Government of Texas Greg Abbott)
Reyna Cantu was booked in the Hidalgo County jail on drug possession charges.
Fentanyl, a powerful opioid up to 50 times stronger than heroin, has driven the latest phase of the opioid crisis in Texas and the rest of the US
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a record 106,699 Americans will die of a drug overdose in 2021, about 70% of which involved fentanyl.
DEA ISSUES DIRECT WARNING ABOUT FENTANYL MIXED WITH CARN-EATING ‘TRANQ’ ZOMBIE DRUG SEIZED IN 48 OF 50 STATES
In the two years since the start of Operation Lone Star, state police have seized more than 380 million lethal doses of fentanyl, according to Abbott.
Fentanyl, which is available in pill, powder, and liquid forms, is often made into other illegal drugs, including heroin and counterfeit pills.
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The Texas House of Representatives passed a bill Tuesday, 143-2, to decriminalize fentanyl test strips, a measure proponents hope will reduce drug overdoses.
Across the entire southwestern border, Customs and Border Protection seized 11,000 pounds of fentanyl in the first five months of fiscal year 2023, well on track to easily eclipse the 14,700 pounds of fentanyl seized in fiscal year 2022.
