(The AEGIS Alliance) – Authorities apprehended two suspects in southern California, a man, and a woman during a huge drug seizure investigation that resulted in the confiscation of an amount of a powerful man-made opioid with the potential to kill greater than 50 million people.
30-year-old Andres Jesus Morales and 27-year-old Christine Ponce are both facing felony charges that include 4 counts of possession of an illegal drug for sale, according to a statement by the Riverside District Attorney’s Office on Thursday.
The Press-Enterprise reported that it’s believed the two are a couple, who got busted after an investigation that lasted for months into a suspected Riverside County opioid drug ring.
Cops raided a residence in Perris on August 17, where they confiscated 21 kilos (46 pounds) of suspected carfentanil, a lethal man-made opioid that is 100 times more potent than fentanyl and 10,000 times more potent than morphine, with deadly dosages of mere nanograms.
A deadly dosage of fentanyl is only 2 milligrams. It can also be lethal if it touches the skin because it can get absorbed through the skin, and isn’t produced for human usage, the DEA pointed out.
The cops stated they believe the bust was the single biggest carfentanil seizure in the history of Riverside County.
“If mixed in with other drugs, the 21 kilos of carfentanil seized could have been enough to potentially kill more than 50 million people,” police officers stated.
Nobody had been at the residence during the time of the bust, but authorities determined that Morales and Ponce were suspects.
On September 14, investigators raided an additional house located in Perris where they confiscated 16 kilograms (35 pounds) of cocaine and apprehended both suspected drug dealers.
On Thursday, Andres Jesus Morales and Christine Ponce were arraigned in court, and they each gave a not guilty plea to the felony charges. Both of them are currently locked up behind bars without bond pending their upcoming court appearance set for November 9.
Kyle James Lee – The AEGIS Alliance – This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
