More than 120 police officers from the states of Virginia, North Carolina and Texas have broken up on Saturday a drug trafficking network in an operation that has lasted three days and in which more than 35 people have been arrested.
A total of 39 people have been accused of being part of a drug distribution network and possessing large amounts of heroin, fentanyl and cocaine, as reported by the United States Department of Justice in a statement.
Agents have also seized 24 firearms, 30 kilograms of fentanyl, 30 kilograms of heroin, 5 kilograms of cocaine and more than $ 700,000 in cash.
“This massive seizure of narcotics, which included enough fentanyl to kill more than 14 million people, is a positive test of the power and strength of collaboration between federal, state and local security forces,” said Zachary Terwilliger, Virginia District Attorney.
The synthetic opioid analgesic fentanyl, designed to treat severe pain, is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The accusation that was released on Friday afternoon alleges that the 39 defendants had bought and received narcotics from suppliers in Mexico, California and New York and then distributed them using hidden traps in private vehicles or in semi-trailers, trucks or recreational vehicles.
