Mesa County Drug Bust: 90,000 Fentanyl Pills Seized

A Mesa County traffic stop has resulted in an arrest and the seizure of an estimated 90,000 fentanyl pills.

We don't know if Grand Junction was the destination for these drugs or if this was a case of a mule just passing through, but, what we do know is these drugs are not hitting the streets. This may be a case where law enforcement caught a lucky break.

Traffic Stop Yields Fentanyl Jackpot

Wednesday morning a Mesa County Sheriff's Office Deputy made a traffic stop about 10 miles east of the Colorado/Utah state line - though we don't know the reason why the vehicle was pulled over. A search of the vehicle revealed 15 packets containing blue fentanyl pills and one package with about 2 1/2 pounds of white fentanyl powder. The number of pills confiscated is estimated to be 90,000.

Mesa County Sheriff's Office

Suspect Arrested and Charged With Felonies

The Mesa County Sheriff's Office says the driver of the vehicle, 22-year-old Adan Carillo-Murillo was arrested and charged with Possession with Intent to Distribute - a Drug Felony 1, and Special Offended for transporting drugs in the state of Colorado, also a Drug 1 Felony. The suspect was booked into the Mesa County Detention Center.

Mesa County Sheriff's Office

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Disturbing Drug Trend

It's the second time in less than a month that a massive amount of fentanyl has made local headlines. Three weeks ago we reported that 60,000 fentanyl pills had been seized in Mesa County, where no less than 12 deaths have been attributed to fentanyl so far in 2022.

According to the CDC, fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine. Pharmaceutical fentanyl is prescribed by doctors for patients with extreme pain. Illicitly manufactured fentanyl is mixed with other drugs like heroin, cocaine, and meth and made into pills that may resemble other prescription opioids.

150 Deaths Daily Due to Opioid Overdoses

More than 150 people die every day as a result of overdoses related to synthetic opioids like fentanyl. Drugs can contain deadly amounts of fentanyl that you can't see, taste, or smell, however, test strips with results given in 5 minutes can detect lethal levels of fentanyl.

The war on drugs is an endless battle, but we keep on fighting.

Report Names the 10 Most Dangerous Colorado Cities

When it comes to the most unsafe cities in Colorado, here's how the rankings panned out. The violent crime and property crime rates were calculated per 1,000 residents.

According to Safewise, the crimes that Coloradans are most concerned with, are violent crimes, property crimes, package thefts, and gun violence. See the full list of Safewise's most dangerous and safest Colorado cities here.