FL Man Arrested With 10,000 Fentanyl Pills in Mt. Laurel, NJ, Walmart Parking Lot
Authorities say a man from Florida has been charged after authorities allegedly found him in possession of 10,000 fentanyl pills.
33-year-old Shane Smith of Daytona Beach, FL, was arrested Monday in the parking lot of Walmart on Route 73 in Mount Laurel.
He is facing two counts of second-degree distribution of a CDS.
Exact details of an investigation conducted by the Burlington County Prosecutor's Office, United States Homeland Security Investigations, and the Mount Laurel Police Department, which began earlier this month, are not yet being released.
The seized pills are multicolored and informally known as rainbow fentanyl. According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, this trend appears to be a new method used by drug cartels to sell highly addictive and potentially deadly fentanyl made to look like candy to children and young people.
Officials say the pills have a street value of about $40,000.
Smith is being held in the Burlington County Jail in Mount Holly pending a detention hearing in Superior Court. The case will be prepared for presentation to a grand jury for possible indictment.
What is fentanyl?
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 50 times more potent than heroin and 100 times more potent than morphine, according to the DEA.
Just two milligrams of fentanyl, which is equal to 10 to 15 grains of table salt, is considered a lethal dose.
According to the CDC, over 107,000 Americans died of drug overdoses in 2021, with 66% of those deaths related to synthetic opioids like fentanyl.
The public is reminded that charges are accusations and all persons are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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