PANAMA CITY, Fla. (WMBB) — Bay County Sheriff’s officials said they have completed one of the biggest fentanyl drug busts in county history.
Investigators said they caught 30-year-old Kevin McCray with 2.5 pounds of fentanyl. Sheriff Tommy Ford said investigators began tracking McCray last week, when he allegedly flew to California to meet with his supplier.
“Appears that he flew out to California, met with a source of supply in California, and then mailed this substance back to him,” Ford said.
Officials said McCray flew to California on Dec. 2. Ford said McCray then boarded a flight back to Panama City on Tuesday. Deputies said they pulled McCray over for a traffic violation and found marijuana and fentanyl in the car. They claim McCray consented to a search of his stash house on Hamilton Ave. where they found a box of fentanyl.
“It’s probably the most significant seizure that we have seen in Bay County of fentanyl with a street value of probably $345,000,” Ford said.
Ford believes McCray is one of the biggest fentanyl suppliers in Bay County. He believes this seizure saved lives.
“An untold number of lives potentially saved from a seizure of this magnitude,” Ford said.
In the past several months, Ford has charged five people with manslaughter after fatal fentanyl overdoses. He said those cases played a role in the seizure of this fentanyl.
“It’s killing people,” Ford said. “It’s a deadly substance. And we’re making it a priority to get this off the streets and hold those accountable that sell it.”
McCray is in the Bay County jail, charged with the importation and trafficking of fentanyl across state lines. Each charge carries a 25-year minimum sentence.
