Multiple people are facing narcotics charges following a recent drug sting by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office dubbed “Operation Early Checkout.”
The sting led to arrests at different locations in Jacksonville.
So far, News4Jax knows of at least four suspects arrested during the sting and we’re told there may be more suspects facing charges.
Based on the arrest reports, it appears the suspects spoke with undercover detectives over the phone to set up the time and location of the alleged drug deals. As soon as the deals went down, police swarmed in to take the suspects into custody.
One of the locations of “Operation Early Checkout” was this gas station on Argyle Forest Boulevard where police say one suspect agreed to sell methamphetamines. Investigators say he instructed the undercover detective to follow him into the bathroom where he sold the detective an unspecified amount of meth. After the deal went down, the man was taken into custody. The person who drove Mills to the gas station was also arrested.
The parking lot of Westside gas station on 103rd Street was the location of another arrest. Police say a 35-year old had multiple active warrants for his arrest when they busted him for trafficking ecstasy and trying to sell fentanyl and methamphetamines. Another man who was with him was arrested on drug possession charges
Another location of the operation was the parking lot of this Popeye’s Chicken restaurant on Normandy Blvd. where police say a 30-year old man agreed to sell an undercover detective $125 worth of fentanyl. After the sale was complete, police moved in on the man. He also already had multiple warrants for his arrest.
News4Jax crime and safety expert Ken Jefferson says the one thing all these suspects have in common is that they arranged to meet with undercover detectives at the most public of places to conduct a drug deal.
“What better thing to do in the mind of the person peddling these drugs is to have it openly in the public so it would not appear to be obvious. You know how you look at some things and say I can’t believe it happened in front of me, that’s the reaction they get a lot of times so they’ll pick a public place so it won’t be so obvious as to what they’re doing,” Jefferson said.
All the suspects we named that report are currently in jail awaiting their day in court.