A North Carolina drug ring was broken up Thursday. Authorities found the drugs were being sold to college students.
What We Know:
- In an NBC News report, the North Carolina ring supplied cocaine and marijuana to college students. Twenty-one arrests have been made, some of which are students. Fourteen of the defendants are younger than twenty-five, the youngest being twenty-one.
- Authorities accused the defendants of using fraternities to supply the drugs to students. The schools involved include the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Duke University, and Appalachian State University.
- U.S. attorney Matthew Martin told reporters, “This really is a public health crisis. We really have to stand together, cut off the supply.” Martin believes action needs to be taken to save lives.
- Martin added that arrests made are not low-level offenders. “I want to make it very clear, this is not a situation where you have casual users…these are 21 hardened drug dealers. This conspiracy moved thousands of pounds of marijuana over the course of several years, hundreds of kilos of cocaine.”
- The investigation goes back two years; authorities estimate that the ring made $1.5 million in sales. Officials believe that Francisco Javier Ochoa was the primary supplier, supplying almost 200 pounds of marijuana and 2 kilograms of cocaine to North Carolina weekly. In November, he pleaded guilty to federal narcotics charges and was sentenced to 73 months in prison.
“We are extremely disappointed to learn of these alleged actions on our campus…we will remain vigilant and continue to work with our law enforcement partners to identify and address any illegal drug use on our campus,” said Kevin M. Guskiewicz, UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor.
- Megan Hayes, Associate Vice Chancellor of Appalachian State, commented that they’re “committed to providing a safe campus”. Vice President Micael Schoenfeld of Duke said the school would “take these allegations very seriously”.
As the investigation continues, charges and prison sentences for the defendants are being made. The schools in question are keeping watch over their students to maintain a safe, educational environment.
