The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office has arrested a man for trafficking enough fentanyl to kill 51,500 people.
On September 17, 2024, at 3:08 a.m., deputies performed a traffic stop near Interstate 75 North and East Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. They spoke with a passenger inside the vehicle who stated he had a history of methamphetamine usage and had a torch between his legs. The K9 Section responded and conducted an open-air sniff of the vehicle, alerting to the presence of narcotics inside the car.
Inside the vehicle, deputies found a Springfield Hellcat pistol, a digital scale, and three different drugs, which would later be tested and verified as marijuana, methamphetamine, and fentanyl.
The passenger, Ryan Edward Starr, 38, was charged with:
- Possession of Cannabis Less Than 20 Grams
- Armed Trafficking In Fentanyl (28 Grams or More)
- Armed Trafficking In Amphetamine (14-28 Grams)
- Possession of Drug Paraphernalia
- Possession of Firearm During Commission of a Felony
"I commend our deputies for their proactive patrol in our community," said Sheriff Chad Chronister. "This potentially routine traffic stop removed enough fentanyl to kill 51,500 people from our streets and ensures this dangerous man can no longer spread this poison here in Hillsborough County."
Starr is a convicted felon in Florida.
This investigation is ongoing; any updates will come from the Public Affairs Office.
