At least six people are facing charges related to the largest fentanyl bust in Minnesota state history.
The suspects are tied in a drug trafficking conspiracy that led authorities to seize more than 280,000 fentanyl pills, according to a report announced Thursday.
Identified as Cornell Chandler Jr., 24, Robiel Williams, 23, Quijuan Bankhead, 30, Stardasha Davenport-Mounger, 24, Fo’Tre White, 26, and Shardai Allen, 24, the suspects face charges related to the conspiracy to distribute fentanyl.
White is also facing charges for the possession of a firearm and the possession of a machine gun while being a felon, according to the report.
Pure evil. Fentanyl in stuffed animals. That’s why we need to stop this lethal drug at the border, in the mail&on the internet. Thanks to law enforcement.
Charges: Many pounds of fentanyl pills tucked in stuffed animals, mailed from Arizona to Minnesota. https://t.co/UDS9vIIbYm
— Amy Klobuchar (@amyklobuchar) January 5, 2024
The group had conspired to disperse the pills throughout Minnesota, and several of those charged have been accused of traveling to Phoenix to collect the pills and store them inside stuffed animals, the report noted.
“Pure evil. Fentanyl in stuffed animals,” Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) said in a post on X, the social media website once called Twitter, after the seizure. “That’s why we need to stop this lethal drug at the border, in the mail&on the internet. Thanks to law enforcement.”
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Once stuffed, the pills would be shipped to the area around Minneapolis and Saint Paul, and the total worth of the drugs captured carry a street value of $2.2 million.
“We continue to see the devastating impacts of fentanyl in our communities,” Washington County Sheriff Dan Starry said. “With this seizure, we know that hundreds, if not thousands, of lives have been saved.”