An investigation into fentanyl being sold to a “vulnerable population” in downtown Lethbridge has resulted in the arrest of four people, the Alberta Law Enforcement Response Team announced Wednesday.
In a news release, ALERT said the four people arrested have all been charged with at least one count of drug-trafficking each while arrest warrants have been issued for two additional people that law enforcement officers are now trying to find.
Staff Sgt. Trevor Sheppard with ALERT Lethbridge said the probe sought to crack down on people who are “profiting from the opioid crisis, while lives are lost.”
ALERT said its organized crime team in Lethbridge worked with members of the Lethbridge Police Service on the case, resulting in arrest warrants being issued on Dec. 14.
The four people already taken into custody where arrested at various times and locations from then until now.
ALERT said its focus was “to identify and target street-level drug-traffickers who were selling fentanyl in downtown Lethbridge, inclusive of the vulnerable population.”
The investigation resulted in numerous drug seizures involving small amounts of fentanyl and methamphetamine.
“Interrupting the supply of drugs to our addicted population is critical to saving lives and reducing harm in the downtown core and throughout the community,” said Insp. Russ Lawrence with the LPS.
The four people charged are 29-year-old Anthony Johnston of Coalhurst, 20-year-old Bryson Northpeigan of Lethbridge, 28-year-old D’artangan Pool of Lethbridge and 31-year-old Curtis Wilson of Taber.
Arrest warrants have been issued for 40-year-old Robert Ambrus of Lethbridge and 33-year-old Stacey Hubbard of Lethbridge.
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