Nashville police recently arrested three individuals in connection with narcotics activities, seizing illegal substances in the process.
The three men were arrested after selling three grams of a white powdery substance for $200 to an undercover detective. Officers seized 21 grams of marijuana, 23 Xanax bars, and two 11-gram bags of the white substance that were subsequently found to contain cocaine and fentanyl.
A gun was found in the possession of Smith, who was earlier prohibited from possessing firearms after being convicted of aggravated assault two years prior. Thompson was wanted on six felony aggravated assault warrants related to a shooting incident that took place on April 24.
Thompson is being held on a bond of $377,500, Smith for $100,000, and Terry for $15,000.
The presence of fentanyl in the region is putting individuals at “high risk of overdose injury or death,” it said. Fentanyl is most commonly encountered as a powder mixture with cocaine, counterfeit Oxycodone pills, and counterfeit Xanax pills. Some people had taken what they believed was cocaine before overdosing.
In Davidson County, the department detected fentanyl usage among around 80 percent of overdose deaths this year alone. It encouraged individuals and businesses to carry naloxone, an opioid overdose reversal medication, to save lives.
According to Marie Williams, commissioner at the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (TDMHSAS), the wave of fentanyl overdoses should be more accurately classified as accidental poisoning incidents.
“Because of the prevalence of fentanyl, it’s never been more important to be trained on how to use naloxone to save a life and to keep it on you at all times.”
In 2020, Tennessee saw 2014 deaths due to drug overdoses related to fentanyl. This is double the number of deaths seen in 2019 and close to 12 times the 169 deaths registered in 2015.