Central Oregon drug agents pull over, arrest Prineville woman on fentanyl trafficking charges

PRINEVILLE, Ore. (KTVZ) – A 26-year-old Prineville woman suspected of trafficking fentanyl pills from the Portland area into Central Oregon was arrested in a Highway 26 traffic stop Wednesday morning, the Central Oregon Drug Enforcement Team said.

Drug agents concluded a long-term investigation with the arrest of a woman who allegedly imported fentanyl pills from the Gresham and Sandy areas into Central Oregon, Sergeant Kent Vander Kamp said.

After a multi-county surveillance operation, CODE Team detectives applied for, obtained and executed a search warrant.

Around 6:45 a.m., the woman and her passenger were contacted during a traffic stop on Highway 26 near NW Ryegrass Road.

Vander Kamp said CODE Team detectives and Crook County sheriff’s deputies found and seized a “commercial quantity of fake pharmaceutical tablets made of fentanyl and other evidence of commercial drug sales” from the woman and her SUV.

The woman was booked into the Crook County Jail on drug possession and attempted distribution charges.

CODE Team detectives were assisted by Crook County sheriff’s patrol deputies, the Gresham Police Department, Oregon State Police and Crook County 911.

A “commercial quantity” is defined by statute as five grams or more of a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of fentanyl or any substituted derivative of fentanyl as defined by the Oregon Board of Pharmacy rules, the sergeant said. This is not a separate criminal charge, but rather an increase in the sentencing guidelines. 

Vander Kamp said the Portland area is a central transshipment hub where illegal drugs coming from the southwest border are stored in local warehouses, storage units, and residential properties. The bulk shipments of drugs are usually broken down into smaller quantities and transported to other states or distributed to local dealers.

The Portland area has an international airport, interstate highways, and bus and train lines, making it easy for shipments to be smuggled to other destinations around the pacific northwest.