JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – “Operation Decrypted,” a four-month investigation by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and other partnering agencies, targeted a major drug trafficking organization in Jacksonville, and it resulted in arrests across the country, Sheriff T.K. Waters announced during a Wednesday afternoon news conference.
Those arrests occurred in Jacksonville, and the operation stretched to other parts of Florida, California, Georgia, South Carolina, Virginia, New York, Jamaica and Mexico. A total of 15 people were arrested in the operation, the sheriff said.
“In the past decade, our community has been ravaged by the impact of opiate addiction and related crime,” Waters said. “In recent years, fentanyl, a synthetic opioid, has entered the street narcotics market. Fentanyl’s entry into our community has been devastating and deadly.”
Waters said that in 2021, JSO investigated a “mind-boggling” 409 overdose deaths.
“However, in 2022, that number exploded to 470,” Waters said. “Overwhelmingly, these deaths were the result of fentanyl toxicity. Given these horrifying overdose figures, it is difficult to underestimate the danger these illegal substances pose to our community.”
The sheriff said that every dose of fentanyl removed from the hands of drug dealer is a potential life saved.
“Simply put, the people who are trafficking fentanyl and other poisons are killing members of community and staggering, heartbreaking numbers,” Waters said.
Operation Decrypted, Waters said, targeted some of the largest known sources and suppliers of fentanyl in the Jacksonville area. He said the operation led to the arrest of a California drug supplier with known connections to the “New Generation” Mexican drug cartel.
“The Mexican cartels are ruthless,” DEA Assistant Special Agent in Charge Mike Dubet told News4JAX during a phone interview. “They’re violent. And their product is killing Americans at a record rate. The DEA is here to work with our partners and work things back to the sources of supply and that’s what we’ve done on this case and will continue to do that.”
Seized in the operation included:
- 10 kilograms of cocaine with a street value of $600,000
- 76 kilograms of meth with a street value of over $500,000
- 4 kilograms of fentanyl with a street value of $800,000 (Waters said this equates to 2 million lethal doses of fentanyl)
The sheriff called the outcome of the operation a major law-enforcement achievement. He urged anyone suffering from addiction to seek help.
SAMHSA’s National Helpline is a free, confidential treatment referral service that can be reached by calling 1-800-662-HELP (4357).