Long Island drug traffickers had enough fentanyl to kill all of Suffolk County, authorities say
By Jennifer McLogan
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NEW YORK (WCBS) — Six men accused of trafficking catastrophic amounts of drugs to New York City and Long Island were arrested in a major narcotics takedown, authorities said.
Federal, state and local officials said enough fentanyl to kill the entire population of Suffolk County was seized in the drug bust that was announced Friday.
“The 21st century drug trade” Mexican cartels ran the drug pipeline — with fentanyl, synthetic opioids, heroin and cocaine — through the Bronx and Long Island’s east end, law enforcement officials said.
The suspects were arrested in West Islip, Bay Shore, Wyandanch, Lindenhurst and the Bronx, according to authorities.
“The takedown with significant, not just because this operation spanned from the Bronx to Suffolk County, but because law enforcement recovered enough fentanyl to kill the entire 1.5 million population of Suffolk County,” District Attorney Ray Tierney said.
Cash, guns, ammunition and pill pressing machines were also confiscated.
“This is the 21st century drug trade, where counterfeit pills can be sold over social media, paid for with cash apps, and delivered straight to your doorstep,” Frank Tarentino, with the Drug Enforcement Administration, said.
“Not out of the woods yet” Thousands have died on Long Island since the beginning of the opioid crisis, but last year saw a drop in lethal overdoses. Declines can be traced to increased prevention and education programs, Narcan availability, and collaborative efforts between social services and law enforcement.
Carole Trottere, who lost her son, Alex, to accidental fentanyl poisoning in Suffolk County in 2018, knows the scourge of the opioid crisis and the tragedy in its wake.
“There are hundreds of parents right here on Long Island who are suffering heartbreak like I am,” Trottere said. “We are not out of the woods yet. We cannot afford to take out foot off the gas.”
Since her son’s death, she has been on a mission to raise awareness and stop the drug trade.
“These people, I don’t call them drug dealers anymore, they are death dealers,” she said. “It’s frightening to think of that kind of mass amounts of drugs.”
Without these drug takedowns, she says, the consequences would be chilling.
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