COLLIER COUNTY, Fla. — Collier County Sheriff's Office (CCSO) Detectives arrested a husband and wife on fentanyl trafficking charges and seized over 2 pounds of the lethal opioid during a search warrant Tuesday.
According to CCSO, Angel Pablo Socorro Blanco, 36, and his wife Joseline Pech Arcos, 23, are charged with fentanyl trafficking over 28 grams. Socorro Blanco also faces sale and delivery of fentanyl and possession of narcotic paraphernalia charges.
The search warrant stemmed from a three-month CCSO investigation during which the couple sold an undercover detective 500 fentanyl pills weighing 53.2 grams. Socorro Blanco also gave the detective “samples” of fentanyl pills (40.5 grams), arrest reports said.
Investigators say during the search, detectives discovered two heat-sealed plastic bags containing a total of 10,634 green fentanyl pills inside the residence. The fentanyl weighed 2.37 pounds (1,063.4 grams), enough to kill 531,500 people or more than the entire population of Collier County.
The fentanyl pills were imprinted with “M” and “30” to resemble prescription “30 M” oxycodone hydrochloride 30 mg pills. According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, criminal networks increasingly disguise fentanyl by mixing it into pills designed to mimic prescription painkillers. Fentanyl pills have caused people who believed they were genuine to overdose.
Experts say just 2 mg of fentanyl, equal to a few grains of table salt, is a lethal dosage for most people, and even exposure can cause a fatal reaction, according to the DEA.
