More than 5,000 fentanyl-laced counterfeit medication and several firearms have been seized from a home in Virginia.
The Prince William County Police Department tweeted, “DRUG SEIZURE: [PWCPD] and [DEAWashingtonDC] TF recently seized several firearms and over 5,000 suspected counterfeit fentanyl-laced Percocet pills known to be distributed in the area.”
The statement continues, “This is part of law enforcement’s ongoing joint effort to combat the opioid epidemic in the country.”
DRUG SEIZURE: #PWCPD & @DEAWashingtonDC TF recently seized several firearms and over 5,000 suspected counterfeit fentanyl-laced Percocet pills known to be distributed in the area. This is part of law enforcement's ongoing joint effort to combat the opioid epidemic in the country. pic.twitter.com/Nq1Hz48Asy
— Prince William County Police Department (@PWCPolice) May 4, 2022
According to The Washington Examiner, four individuals have been arrested and charged with intent to distribute a narcotic, possession of a firearm, receiving a stolen firearm, and possession with intent to distribute marijuana, as the outlet reported.
The seizure comes just weeks after the Biden administration sent its drug control strategy to Congress.
NBC News reported the 2022 National Drug Control Strategy is focused on addressing untreated addiction and drug trafficking.
“It’s time we treat addiction like any other disease. And at the same time, we are disrupting drug traffickers’ financial networks, supply chains, and delivery routes, including on the internet,” the president said in a statement.
Dr. Rahul Gupta, Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) explained Biden’s strategy “delivers on his Unity Agenda call to action to beat the overdose epidemic.”
He added, “It focuses on actions we must take to reduce overdoses right now. Those include expanding access to high impact harm reduction tools like naloxone, quickly connecting more people to treatment, disrupting transnational criminal organizations’ financial networks and supply chains, and making better use of data to guide drug policy and save lives. This Strategy signals a new era of drug policy centered on individuals and communities.”
According to NBC News, the overdose epidemic took close to 107,000 lives from November 2020 to November 2021.
CDC Director, Rochelle Walensky, noted “overdose deaths continue to rise across the United States. To bring an end to this crisis, collaborative public health and public safety solutions are needed within communities.”
She continued, “CDC is fully committed to leveraging its scientific expertise to advance the goals of the administration’s National Drug Control Strategy.”
