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UPDATE: Authorities: Heroin A Big Problem On Both Sides Of River

Posted on: Monday, October 28, 2013

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We’ve heard about meth, bath salts and other types of illegal drugs and how they’ve kept local law enforcement busy.

But after Thursday’s raids, we know heroin may be the biggest drug problem of all.

Area law enforcement agencies are happy with the results of Thursday’s drug busts in both Wood and Washington Counties.

But they realize it doesn’t wipe out the problem completely.

As is also the case in other West Virginia cities, the drug trade is coming in from major metropolitan areas, such as Detroit and Chicago.

And the reason it’s so widespread is that heroin, even considering it’s illegal, is costing less than ever.

“I think the markets dictate the price, and I think it’s lucrative enough for these guys to come and establish themselves as drug producers or drug providers,” says Parkersburg Police Chief Joe Martin.

Washington County Sheriff Larry Mincks says the problem is just as bad on the Ohio side of the river, adding the drug trade doesn’t know the river separates the two states.

For that reason, the drug task forces in both states work very closely with each other, as they did with Thursday’s raids.

Parkersburg Police say one of the suspects from Thursday’s 19th Street raid, Keith Irons, remains at large.