EAGLE COUNTY, Colo. (KDVR) — Several pounds of illegal fentanyl pills and 128 grams of cocaine were seized during a traffic stop near the town of Gypsum last week, the Eagle County Sheriff’s Office said in a release.
The Gore Range Narcotics Interdiction Team pulled over a car traveling eastbound on Interstate 70 for traffic violations on the morning of March 8. The Sheriff’s Office said “indicators of further criminal activity were observed,” at which point a K-9 was brought in to investigate the vehicle.
The K-9 alerted its handler to the driver’s side door where 128 grams of cocaine were found in a backpack. Thirteen pounds of M30 fentanyl pills were also found in the spare tire compartment, the Sheriff’s Office said.
M30 pills are counterfeit pills that are designed to look like 30 mg oxycodone pills but frequently are laced with fentanyl. According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, a 2 mg dose of fentanyl can be enough to be deadly.
Estevan Osuna, 24, of Auburn, Washington, is facing several charges including:
- Distribution and possession of a schedule 1 controlled substance – cocaine
- Special offender importation of cocaine
- Distribution and possession of a schedule 2 controlled substance – fentanyl
- Conspiracy
Osuna is being held on a $200,000 bond.
Anyone with information about the suspect or this crime is asked to call the Eagle County Sheriff’s Office at 970-328-8500 or anonymously to the Eagle County Crime Stoppers at 970-328-7007, 1-800-972-TIPS. Online tips can also remain anonymous or send a mobile tip using the free “P3 Tips” mobile app. Tipsters may be eligible for a reward.
Fentanyl can be deadly in small doses
According to the DEA, one kilogram of fentanyl has the potential to kill 500,000 people. So 13 pounds of fentanyl pills, which equals nearly 6 kilograms, “means almost 3 million lives could have been impacted,” police said in their release about the arrest. This estimate is based on pure fentanyl, but because police did not make it clear how much fentanyl was in each counterfeit pill, this estimate may not be accurate.