A sugar packet full of fentanyl could contain enough doses to kill 2,000 people. Over the last year or so, fentanyl distribution has been on the rise locally — as have overdoses from the potent synthetic opioid drug.
Aaryn Hearn was just 20 years old when she was the victim of an overdose that led to her death. After months of investigation, two Owensboro men were indicted by a federal grand jury for charges related to the incident.
“When a person is 20 years old and they die of a drug overdose and they had their whole life ahead of them, it hits home and people can see that,” said Michael Gannon, the Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Indianapolis DEA District Office.
Gannon said Hearn’s mother was “absolutely heartbroken and devastated.”
“That’s what motivates us to get out there and do our job and try to prevent this from going out into the community,” he said. “It’s very destructive.”
The federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment against 19-year-old Jonathan Brown and 20-year-old Jonathan Stallings in the Hearn case. Both Brown and Stallings are charged with Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance. Brown was also charged with Distribution of Controlled Substances resulting in the death and serious bodily injury of another person.
The case was first investigated by the Central City Police Department because the overdose occurred in their jurisdiction. The suspects were from Owensboro, meaning the Central City and Owensboro police departments joined forces. OPD eventually contacted the DEA to complete the investigation.
It’s the latest example of how local, state and federal law enforcement agencies are doing what they can to dismantle trafficking organizations and put distributors behind bars.
“At the Owensboro Police Department, we care about the safety and security of our community and protecting our citizens, that includes the citizens of surrounding communities,” said Major Jason Winkler. “We will work with all of our federal, state and local partners to accomplish the mission.”
Winkler said fentanyl pills started surfacing in the Owensboro area a little more than a year ago as counterfeit Percocet 30 pills.
“Originally, people were seeking out legitimate, factory Percocet 30s and purchasing them thinking that’s what they were getting. They got pills laced with fentanyl,” he said. “We noticed a shift towards people specifically seeking out these fake Percocet 30 pills.”
Winkler said it’s important to remember that addiction to controlled substances is a medical condition.
“Addiction to money, power and influence over people that you see as weak is not a medical condition — that’s a crime,” he said. “The individuals that choose to victimize our community, to victimize these addicts, we will use every resource available to us to bring them to justice. … They want to create addicts. They want to contribute to the problem because that increases their money and their power.”
Gannon urged the community to encourage those who show signs of addiction to seek proper support.
One of his top recommended resources is operationprevention.com. The site says the program is an educational initiative “designed to inspire life-changing conversations and equip people from all walks of life with the knowledge and refusal skills they need to steer clear of substance misuse. Access standards-aligned content for students in grades 3-12, available in both English & Spanish, plus additional resources for educators, families, and professionals.”
Meanwhile, Gannon said law enforcement at all levels will continue to fight the war on drugs.
“Our job is to get out here, hit the streets, and get these drug dealers off the streets to keep our community safe,” he said. “We’re going to continue to do that and continue to develop our investigations, and take the most signficant violators off the streets to try to help our community.”
Winkler noted that taking down the traffickers isn’t an overnight process.
“These investigations take thousands of hours,” he said. “I have officers taking 17 or 18 calls a shift, but they take every one of them personally. They give everything that they have, and it takes a special person to do that. It takes a lot of time because we have an obligation to do things right. We have to be able to prove to a jury of the suspect’s peers that they committed this act. We can’t go in and do it halfway.”
Gannon echoed that, saying it may take months to get the proof needed to dismantle an organization. While most of the work is done behind the scenes, Gannon said busts in recent months should paint a clear picture of their mission.
“If someone is distributing drugs, our message is clear,” he said. “We’re coming to get you off the streets and put you in jail.
