RUTHERFORD CO., Tenn. (WKRN) – Fentanyl, a dangerous and potentially deadly drug, was discovered in a Star Wars toy, according to Rutherford County Sheriff’s Department.
Fentanyl is known to be 80 to 100 times more potent than morphine. Being exposed to even one grain of it can be deadly.
Rutherford County Sheriff’s Captain Britt Reed said the fentanyl found inside a Baby Yoda toy was intended to be sold in the county by a man from Michigan.
Zave Garry, 34, has now been charged with possession of 176 illegal fentanyl pills that were made to resemble 30mg tablets of Roxicodone. Roxicodone is a brand name of oxycodone – an opioid pain medication.
Reed said the discovery was made August 27, 2021. At that time, Garry was out on bond, accused of a similar crime in Coffee County.
He said in Coffee County, 157 of the same type of pills were discovered two weeks earlier, and investigators linked Garry to have been allegedly intercepting a shipment of approximately 1,000 of the tablets.
“These non-pharmaceutically produced pills are a true danger to the user due in part to inconsistent production methods along with the inherent dangers of Fentanyl,” Reed said.
Garry now faces more charged of felony possession of illegal drugs and his bond was increased by $150,000.
He’s being held in Rutherford County ahead of a hearing scheduled for Sept. 7, 2021.