By CRAIG PEARSON, WINDSOR STAR
Following a 12-week undercover investigation Windsor police have seized an estimated $180,000 in drugs, including the force’s largest ever haul of crystal meth.
Officers made buys from street-level and mid-level dealers and seized 850 grams of crystal methamphetamine, among other drugs. The operation started in September and uncovered a growing meth problem in Windsor, including with blue product like that featured on the acclaimed TV series Breaking Bad.
“Meth has gone crazy,” Staff Sgt. Frank Providenti, the head of the department’s intelligence unit, said Thursday during a press conference at police headquarters.
“In Windsor, it’s now the drug of choice. Before we had a problem with crack cocaine. It’s still out there but not to the extent it used to be. Crystal meth is now easier to get and has a better bang for your buck.”
The other alarming finding from the investigation — which included dangerous undercover work from more than one officer — is the rise in fentanyl, including “bootleg” and powdered versions of the sometimes fatal drug.
Providenti said at least two or three people in Windsor have died from fentanyl overdoses in the last year and that further investigation might prove the number is actually higher.
Besides more than 850 grams of methamphetamine the latest operation netted: eight fentanyl patches, six grams of fentanyl powder, 105 oxycodone pills, 3.6 grams of cocaine, 0.3 grams of crack, 129 MDMA pills, 0.1 grams of heroin, seven hydromorphone pills, and 11.7 grams of marijuana.
“This is a significant seizure,” Providenti said, noting that many of the drugs confiscated will now be more difficult to find in Windsor over the holiday period.
Police have charged 15 people, though four suspects have yet to be arrested. Most arrests in the operation were made two days ago.
