Ongoing investigations of pill trafficking into Kingsport have prompted the arrest of two men allegedly transporting drugs from Detroit, Mich., along with the seizure of Roxicet valued at $4,000 on the street.
KPD Vice Unit Det. Nathan Elliott says the incident occurred Wednesday morning in the parking lot of Westside Inn, 1017 West Stone Drive. Investigators were at the location after reportedly receiving information that pills were being trafficked into the area.
Elliott says that as four vice officers approached a 1990 Lexus Sedan, the two occupants threw 100 pills out of the windows. They then complied with verbal commands from police and were arrested without incident.
The pills are reportedly 30 mg Roxicet — a variation of oxycodone that contains acetaminophen — which Elliott says carries a street value of approximately $40 apiece. Police also seized $600 in cash believed to be the proceeds of illegal narcotic sales, the Lexus and a small amount of marijuana.
The suspects are identified as Winford Byrd, 28, of Detroit, Mich., and Darryl Bryant, 47, of Knoxville, Tenn. They were each booked into the city jail and charged with possession of schedule II drugs for resale and simple possession of marijuana.
Police have found Oxycodone to be the most commonly abused drug in Kingsport, according to Det. Elliott, while combating the traffic of all pills into the city has become a priority of the KPD Vice Unit. Anyone with information on such activities is urged to contact Kingsport police.