An Alabama veterinarian has been arrested for reportedly buying nearly 36,000 fatal doses of fentanyl with bitcoins on the dark web.
David Ray Wallace, 46, a vet from Alabaster, and Dana Marie Leslie, of Pelham, are charged with conspiracy to commit a controlled substance crime after Homeland Security intercepted a package at JFK airport, in New York, bound for Shelby County.
Investigators found 18 grams of fentanyl – an illegal painkiller 100 times more powerful than morphine and 50 times stronger than heroin – stuffed inside a teddy bear.
David Ray Wallace, 46, (left) a vet from Alabaster, and Dana Marie Leslie, (right) of Pelham, are charged with conspiracy to commit a controlled substance crime
They identified that Wallace, a practicing vet in Trussville, Alabama, and Leslie were the intended recipients and the local Shelby County Drug Enforcement Task Force issued search warrants on their homes.
The investigation revealed it was Wallace who purchased the fentanyl from the dark web using bitcoins. Leslie, 33, was also tied to the purchase.
The pair were arrested Monday and are being held in the Shelby County Jail with no bond.
Lt. Clay Hammac, Commander of the Shelby County Drug Enforcement Task Force, warned that Wallace and Leslie’s delivery could have contained enough fatal doses to kill tens of thousands of people.
Investigators found 18 grams of fentanyl – an illegal painkiller 100 times more powerful than morphine and 50 times stronger than heroin – stuffed inside a teddy bear
Lt. Clay Hammac, Commander of the Shelby County Drug Enforcement Task Force, warned that Wallace and Leslie’s delivery could have contained enough fatal doses to kill tens of thousands of people
‘It takes less than 2 mg of fentanyl to deliver a fatal dose; that equates to nearly 36,000 fatal doses of fentanyl taken off the streets. We must continue to be diligent and aggressive in our fight against drug trafficking and distribution.’
Hammac, who gives speeches about the dangers of opioids and all drugs, added: ‘This is a huge one for the good guys.’
Fentanyl has blamed as a factor in America’s spirally opioid epidemic and has been responsible for a rise in fatal overdoses.
In Jefferson County, Alabama alone, there were 105 fentanyl related deaths in 2016 – double that of those in 2015 as the drug continues to rise in popularity, Alabama.com reports.
A synthetic opioid, it was initially only used for relief of severe pain in terminal cancer patients.