On Wednesday evening, January 25, a Costa Mesa police officer attempted to stop a vehicle for a vehicle code violation, but the driver refused to yield and subsequently led officers on a slow-speed pursuit through the east side of Costa Mesa.
According to the Costa Mesa Police, during the pursuit three bags of narcotics were tossed out of the fleeing vehicle.
The vehicle finally stopped in Newport Beach. With the assistance of the Newport Beach Police Department, officers conducted a high-risk car stop and arrested both subjects.
Officers safely recovered the three bags of discarded narcotics and discovered they contained approximately 30,000 multi-colored fentanyl pills. Both arrestees were booked at the CMPD jail for felony evading and possession for sale of fentanyl.
The Costa Mesa PD thanked the Newport Beach Police Department for the back-up. “We’re all here to get these dangerous drugs out of our communities,” the CMPD wrote on its Facebook page.
This arrest comes on the heels of a drug bust last December orchestrated by the Newport Beach PD.
An estimated 50,000 Fentanyl pills, with an estimated street value of $250,000, were among illegal items seized by the Newport Beach Police Department’s Special Investigations Unit during the arrest of a suspected narcotics dealer in Newport Beach on December 9.
According to information from the NBPD, during the service of a search warrant NBPD Detectives seized an estimated 50,000 Fentanyl pills in various forms, designed to look like prescription Oxycodone, Xanax and Adderall pills.
The suspected narcotics dealer was also in possession of a large amount of cash, a homemade firearm, also referred to as a “ghost gun,” and a high-capacity magazine.
Because Fentanyl, a dangerous and highly concentrated opioid, is being added to many street drugs, the use of any street drugs can now turn out to be deadly, police said.
“The Newport Beach Police Department would like to remind the public that Fentanyl can be found in many forms. Only trust your doctor with prescription medication to help combat the Fentanyl overdose crisis,” said NBPD Interim Police Chief Joe Cartwright. “Please contact the Newport Beach Police Department if you have any information relating to the sale of illegal drugs and/or prescription pills.”
Anonymous tips can be made through the NBPD TIP Line at (949) 644-3752.
