ELKINS, W.Va (WDTV) - Senator Joe Manchin and Dr. Rahul Gupta came to Elkins to announce Randolph County’s new High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area designation.
Randolph County was the 24th county in West Virginia given this designation.
“If you see the map, you can see where Randolph County is and where other higher counties is. It’s gonna bring in all of those resources, the ability to share intelligence and go after the bad guys like never before in West Virginia,” Gupta explained.
Manchin said it was thanks to the help of local law enforcement and United States Attorney for the Northern District of West Virginia Bill Ihlenfield that they were granted this opportunity to have access to any resources needed to combat drug trafficking.
“It gives us the resources to basically be able to put extra people and extra time in doing these cases and basically bringing them to prosecution,” Manchin explained.
Gupta said after recent meetings with Mexican officials, the United States shared what Mexico needed to do to assist in combatting drug trafficking.
“Whether it’s the precursor chemicals coming into their shores or the air freight that are seized when they are for no good reason. Those fentanyl labs are seized and destroyed before they get into our communities,” he explained.
Gupta and Manchin said that combatting this epidemic goes beyond law enforcement.
“We need to focus on youth prevention as a primary way to make sure we are getting children, the future of both countries to understand what a scourge is, synthetics like fentanyl, like meth and how bad that is,” Gupta said.
“There is no more experimentation with these fentanyl-laced drugs. You really don’t know if someone thinks you’re taking a party drug or something like this, and you’re wanting to be cool with your friends. That one pill will kill you. You cannot do that. So, education is really where it starts,” Manchin added.
Senator Shelley Moore Capito said this designation will make a difference in Randolph County.
“A HIDTA designation means more resources to support local efforts and solutions that are already making a difference; and this designation for Randolph County will help local, state, and community leaders do even more to put an end to the drug crisis here in West Virginia. As a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I’ve worked hard to secure funds like those provided through the HIDTA program, and I will continue working with the administration and those on the frontlines here at home to finally put an end to this epidemic that has hurt so many across our state,” Senator Capito said.