22 March 2023
COFFEYVILLE, Kan. (KSNW) — The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office says a man called 911 after finding a PVC pipe full of blue pills at his work.
The sheriff’s office took custody of the pipe, and after examination, detectives confirmed that the pills were fentanyl. The sheriff’s office says they are “dirty 30” fentanyl pills, which means they have been made to look like oxycodone pills.
A count by the sheriff’s office and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation determined there were 5,354 pills.
Fentanyl pills courtesy Montgomery Co. Sheriff’s Office
Fentanyl Pills courtesy Montgomery Co. Sheriff’s Office
“I want to thank the individual that located this PVC pipe laying on the ground, and called the Sheriff’s Office,” says Sheriff Ron Wade. “This individual probably saved multiple lives and definitely hurt someone’s illegal business. We have roughly 31,000 citizens in Montgomery County. We just took possession of 5,354 fentanyl pills, which potentially could have killed almost 18% of our population in Montgomery County, if it had ended up in the wrong hands.” said Wade.
The pills have an estimated street value of $321,240, according to the sheriff’s office, which says they are conducting more tests on them. Investigators are still working to determine where the drugs came from.