APD arrested five on drug charges amid an overdose surge, but hasn't linked them to nearly 80 ODs and nine deaths; more arrests and murder charges possible.
In a press conference on Tuesday, Lieutenant Patrick Eastlick said that APD does not have any suspects confirmed to be connected to or responsible for the surge, which has resulted in nearly 80 overdoses and as many as nine suspected deaths.
Police have arrested Gary Lewis, 50; Denise Horton, 47; Kanady Rimijo, 32; Marcellus Barron, 30; and Ronnie Mims, 45, all of whom face various drug-related charges. Two other suspects, Johnny Lee Wright, 55, and Brandi Brite, 26, were also arrested. "The individual individuals arrested during these investigations are not linked, as of right now, to any of the overdose victims," Eastlick said on Tuesday. "And the purpose of these operations was to try to identify dealers responsible and the sources of the narcotics which caused the overdoses."
Without that link between the victims and suspects, Eastlick said police cannot make a case for homicide. In recent months, a bipartisan group of officials have called for increased scrutiny in prosecuting fentanyl-related crimes. In Hays County, an 18-year-oldEastlick said on Tuesday that whether or not there will be more arrests will be determined by the course of the investigation but "hopefully" there could be more.
In a brief statement on Tuesday, the District Attorney's Office said, "Our office looks forward to working with our law enforcement partners on these cases."
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