Dayton Drug Bust Seizes Enough Fentanyl ‘To Kill the Entire Population of Ohio—Many Times Over’

'Chemical warefare' as huge drugs seizure illustrates scale of opioid crisis

'Chemical warfare' as suspected 44 pounds of Fentanyl is seized by law enforcement officials in Dayton, Ohio, during the week of Oct. 21, 2019. (Photo: Montgomery County Ohio Sheriff's Office)

Three suspects were arrested and charged after a Dayton, Ohio, drug bust involving several law enforcement authorities netted over 44-pounds of suspected Fentanyl. In addition, police confiscated 1500-grams of suspected Methamphetamine, 500-grams of suspected Heroin, 3 firearms and over $30,000 in cash.

The three suspects named were Shamar Davis, 31; Anthony Franklin, 30; and Grady Jackson, 37, all of Dayton, Ohio. Each suspect is facing charges of intent to distribute 400 or more grams of Fentanyl and felon in possession of a firearm.

“The quantity of Fentanyl in this case amounts to chemical warfare and a weapon of mass destruction,” said Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost. “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.”

“Fentanyl and methamphetamine are responsible for the vast majority of overdose deaths in our area, removing these materials from our streets will save lives,” said Montgomery County Coroner Dr. Kent Harshbarger.

“Twenty-kilograms of Fentanyl is enough to kill the entire population of Ohio, many times over,” said Vance Callender, Homeland Security Investigations special agent in charge for Michigan and Ohio. “As this significant seizure makes clear, HSI and our partners are united in our resolve to protect our communities and our country from the deadly scourge of drug trafficking. 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.”

“This multi-million dollar Fentanyl seizure clearly shows the enormity of the opioid problem in this area,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Deters of the FBI’s Cincinnati Division. “Law enforcement will continue to work aggressively to address the illegal drug supply, but there is also a continuing need to address demand as well.”

The seizure came after combined efforts from the Montgomery County Sherriff’s Office, the Miami Valley Bulk Smuggling Task Force (which is part of the Ohio Attorney General’s Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission), the FBI’s Safe Street Task Force, and the RANGE Task Force.

Fentanyl is classified as a synthetic opioid. Vast numbers of Americans have fallen victim to black market counterfeit painkillers that are often laced with lethal amounts of Fentanyl.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) states that almost 50,000 American lives were lost to opioid-related overdose events in 2017. Some 28,000 of those deaths were related to synthetic opioids such as Fentanyl.

The drug is legally available, but is normally only prescribed in patches to people suffering extreme pain, such as people in the final stages of cancer. It is said to be up to 50 times more potent than heroin. As little as 2-milligrams of Fentanyl is enough to kill most people.