By Heart of Illinois ABC
BLOOMINGTON – A Wednesday night drug arrest in Bloomington is part of a dangerous trend police are finding on the streets.
Police arrested 48-year old Dujuan L. Enos Wednesday for driving on a revoked license.
Police found three grams of fentanyl in Enos’ car, and after searching his home, found another 26 grams – plus, drug sales equipment, cash and eight grams of crack-cocaine.
“Any amount is important for us on a street level,” said John Fermon with the Bloomington Police Department.
Fermon says over the past five years, fentanyl has become a top priority.
Officials note it was of less concern than heroin or methamphetamine in the early 2010’s, but took off in 2016 – and hasn’t slowed down since.
“With our vice unit, they focus specifically on major drugs – hard drugs. Right now, fentanyl is at the top of the list. That is a killer in the community.”
Experts say fentanyl is 100 times more potent than morphine – plus, it’s cheaper and easier to make.
Fermon says the synthetic nature of the drug is the main cause for concern.
“You don’t have to grow any poppy seeds or anything, so basically, as fast as you can make it, you can push it out. And it has a deadly effect in our community, and throughout the state and the nation,” Fermon said.
Fermon says the recent legalization of marijuana has allowed the department to focus more on the fentanyl issue before it gets even worse.
“10, 15 years ago, maybe we did a cannabis case, but now that has been moved over to fentanyl or meth, which has been more prevalent here over the past 5-6 years,” Fermon said.
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