NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Two people have been arrested after being connected to illicit fentanyl sales in Middle Tennessee. The drug is linked to an increasing amount of local overdose deaths.
In Tennessee, the drug was linked to more than 2,700 deaths in 2021, an almost 40% increase from the prior year.
With these arrests, authorities seized 47 kilograms of drugs which included combinations of meth laced with fentanyl, cocaine laced with fentanyl and pure fentanyl.
Kevin Bucio-Arredondo and Leslie Heredia, from California, were arrested last week in Murfreesboro with the drugs.
In the spring of 2022, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Middle Tennessee Drug Related Death Task Force investigation led to a drug trafficking organization tied to the Sinaloa Cartel. The investigation was conducted in conjunction with the 18th Judicial District Drug Task Force, Metro Nashville Police Department, Murfreesboro Police Department, the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office, and the Drug Enforcement Administration Tactical Diversion Squad.
Authorities then discovered a shipment of drugs being sent to Murfreesboro from California. The two arrested were involved.
