A Texas man has pleaded guilty to trafficking fentanyl after Rankin County Police discovered over 10,000 pills laced with the illegal substance during a traffic stop.
On April 25, 2022, a deputy stopped a Chevrolet Tahoe driven by 28-year-old Carlos Martinez of Dallas, Texas for a traffic violation on Interstate 20.
During the traffic stop, the officer saw that the back panel of the front passenger seat was lying on the floor, as well as two large packages wrapped in electrical tape protruding from the altered seat.
Upon further investigation, the deputy discovered that the packages contained over 10,000 blue M30 pills, which the Mississippi Forensics Laboratory later confirmed were counterfeit oxycodone laced with fentanyl.
As a result, a Rankin County Grand Jury indicted Martinez on July 18, 2022, for Aggravated Trafficking.
“Carlos Martinez chose to traffic the very drug I have repeatedly warned our community about−the deadly blue M30 pill. This pill is passed off as oxycodone but is actually lethal fentanyl,” District Attorney John K. Bramlett, Jr. stated. “Martinez’s actions are precisely how this poison gets into the hands of the citizens of this county, whether they are unsuspecting drug addicts or curious novices.”
