MASSIVE DRUG BUST IN WOOD CO.
Thursday, May 11th, 2006 -- 12:31 PM
Audio - 1:54Wood County officials are calling it the largest drug bust in the county?s history.
Nearly 160 people are expected to be charged; over $100,000 of marijuana has been confiscated.
Wood County Sheriff Thomas Reichert expect as many as 617 individual charges will be filed in Wood County Circuit Court.
?This began about fifteen months ago,? Reichert explains. ?We?ve been conducting an undercover drug operation involving an undercover drug officer making purchases in the Central Wisconsin area.?
Reichert says the investigation turned up an ?informal drug network?.
?If individuals didn?t have drugs, they would make a series of phone calls to other individuals,? Reichert says. ?It was apparent to us the people involved in this knew each other.?
While a lot of marijuana was confiscated, the undercover officer had no trouble getting virtually any drug he requested.
?Literally every time our undercover would attempt to buy drugs, he was able to,? Reichert says. ?Just about any drug you can think of was involved: several types of marijuana, crack cocaine, LSD, ecstasy, Methamphetamine, a variety of prescription drugs and a variety of schedule narcotics, also.?
Nearly all of the suspects are from the Wisconsin Rapids area. Some are parents that are alleged to have sold drugs to their children?s friends. In one case, a man and woman involved a 15-year-old boy in selling marijuana.
?I found that to be very disturbing.?
Reichert hopes the bust will reduce the amount of drugs in the area, but knows it isn?t the end of problem.
?I don?t think it?s going to put drug investigations at the Sheriff?s Department out of business,? Reichert says.
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