Oregon police seized 18 pounds of fentanyl pills, enough to kill 4 million people, in a car when they found the driver passed out on the side of the road this month.
The driver, Andre Lavell Johnson, was found “slumped over the steering wheel” by police in Eugene, Oregon on Oct. 19. Officers pinned the car before awakening Johnson, according to press release from the police department.
Johnson attempted to start the vehicle and refused commands from the police to stop. Officers removed him from the vehicle and spotted a firearm and bags containing pills in the care. The pills were later determined to be fentanyl, “matching the description of currently circulating counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl.”
Johnson had warrants out for nis arrest.Over the next 28 hours, officers and detectives conducted follow-up search warrants on Johnson’s vehicles and residence where they seized 18 pounds of fentanyl in powder and pill form, 12 firearms and over $47,000 in cash. At least six firearms seized from Johnson were confirmed to have been stolen.
Johnson is currently in the Lane County Jail on his warrants as well as probable cause charges of DUI Felony, Driving While Suspended Felony, Felon in Possession of a Firearm, and two counts of Unlawful Delivery of a Schedule 2 Controlled Substance.
Last week, police at LAX airport in Los Angeles found 12,000 suspected fentanyl pills hidden in sealed candy boxes. The suspect tried to go through TSA with bags of sealed snacks, but he did not make it through security (via Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department):
The suspect attempted to go through TSA screening with several bags of candy and miscellaneous snacks with the intent of boarding a plane. However, it was discovered that inside the “Sweetarts”, “Skittles”, and “Whoppers” candy boxes were fentanyl pills and not candy. The suspect fled prior to being detained by law enforcement but has been identified and the investigation is on-going.
The L.A. County Sheriff’s Department added that with Halloween approaching, parents need to make sure they check their kids’ candy and to contact law enforcement if they find anything they believe to be narcotics.
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