Neighbors shocked by arrests of 2 Sarasota men accused of selling deadly drug out of garage

SARASOTA, Fla. (WFLA)—Sarasota County deputies busted two heroin kingpins. The pair was so influential, overdoses dropped after they were taken off the streets. But they weren’t dealing in dark alleys and shady neighborhoods—they were selling drugs out of a garage.

Theodore Avenue is a quaint neighborhood with churches nearby. And deputies learned something sinister was going on inside one garage.

Michael Sandusky, 23, and Michael White, 28, were packaging and selling Carfentanil, disguising it as heroin.

Carfentanil is a deadly opioid—10,000 times more powerful than morphine. Even a tiny amount can kill you. And this story shows the powerful threat heroin has placed on Sarasota County.

“It’s in every place in society right now, it’s permeated every corner, every level, and that’s what makes it difficult for us. It’s just all over the place,” explained Captain John Walsh with the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office.

“That scares the hell out of me,” said resident Debbie Decatur.

Decatur lives a stone’s throw away from the house, and worries for her grandchildren and the other kids here.

“They don’t care who they sell it to. They want to get their fix. That bothers me very much,” said Decatur.

When 8 on your side went to the house, a man inside answered the door, but refused to comment. Deputies say the pair sold the deadly Carfentanil out of the garage to squeeze out as much profit as possible. It took a lot of resources and undercover work to nab them.

“People like Sandusky and Michael White are basically taking advantage of people with this addiction who have no control over it and they’re just selling relentlessly to these people,” said Captain Walsh.

And it’s a clear example of why the community needs to step up and fight this drug because if it happened here, it can happen anywhere.

Both men remain in custody. Sandusky’s charges carry a $229,000 bond and White is being held without bond. The investigation is ongoing.