Federal, State and Local Law Enforcement Officials Promote DEA Prescription Drug Take-Back Day

Middletown, Conn. – National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day is Saturday, April 29, and Connecticut residents are encouraged to bring their potentially dangerous, unwanted medicines to more than 60 collection sites around the state between 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Individuals can find a nearby collection site by visiting www.dea.gov and clicking on the “Take-Back Site Locations” link.

U.S. Attorney Deirdre Daly, DEA Assistant Special Agent in Charge Brian Boyle, Middlesex County Assistant State’s Attorney Peter McShane, Connecticut State Police Colonel Alaric Fox and Middletown Police Chief William McKenna convened at the Middletown Police Department this afternoon to promote the event. The Middletown Police Department will serve as a collection location for this Saturday’s Drug Take-Back Day.

“The opioid epidemic continues to ravage our state as it has states all across the country,” said U.S. Attorney Daly. “Thousands of Connecticut families have lost loved ones to drug overdoses. Tragically, last year alone 917 people in Connecticut died from an overdose and the numbers of deaths are increasing. Far too often the abuse started with painkillers or other prescription narcotics. Again and again, we find victims who were injured and became addicted to legally-prescribed opioids, or family members and friends who experiment with leftover pills they find in medicine cabinets. You may be surprised by the quantity and types of drugs you have in your home. I strongly urge you to collect all of your excess drugs and dispose of them this Saturday at one of more than 60 locations across our state. By doing so, you may be saving someone close to you from addiction, or much worse.”

“Many Americans are not aware that medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly vulnerable to diversion, misuse and abuse,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Ferguson. “Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are at alarming rates, as are the number of accidental poisoning and overdoses due to the illegal use of these drugs. Please take the time to clean out your medicine cabinet and make your home safe from drug theft and abuse.”

“It is clear that the Take Back Days and the medication collection boxes at police stations have increased awareness of the serious problem of addiction and the need to properly dispose of over-the-counter prescription medicine,” said State’s Attorney McShane. “I am glad that police and prosecutors are taking a proactive approach to aid in the fight in the epidemic that we are faced with.”

“The Connecticut State Police, along with the balance of our law enforcement partners, remain fully committed to addressing the scourge of opioid addiction, through enforcement, education and community service,” said Colonel Fox. “The Drug Take Back Day is but one of the many steps law enforcement is committed to in order to combat this issue.”

“We are happy to, once again, participate in the DEA’s National Drug Take Back Day,” said Chief McKenna. “On Saturday, officers will be made available to any member of the public who wishes to drop off any unused, or expired, prescription medications. The timing of the event unfortunately comes as law enforcement agencies across the country are teaming up with other agencies, hospitals, medical providers and many other organizations in an attempt to combat the opioid epidemic. The goal is to educate the public on the risks associated with the use of these deadly chemicals. Local and federal law enforcement agencies continue to investigate the illegal distribution of these drugs to stop the street level dealing that has resulted in an extraordinary number of overdose deaths. We have also teamed up with the U.S. DOJ, the DEA and our local States Attorney’s office to ensure proper overdose investigation protocols are met, that teamwork is achieved and that communication continues to combat this deadly issue that is affecting more and more families across our city, state and nation.”

Many local police departments in Connecticut, and Connecticut State Police barracks, maintain permanent drop-off receptacles so the public can dispose of unneeded prescription medications anytime throughout the year with no questions asked. Click here for a list of these permanent locations.

U.S. Attorney Daly noted that the U.S. Attorney’s Office and DEA continue to spearhead a comprehensive enforcement and public awareness initiative to prevent opioid addiction and reduce the number of overdose deaths caused by heroin, fentanyl and prescription opioids.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office and DEA, working in close partnership with State’s Attorneys, Connecticut State Police and police departments across the state, are targeting narcotics dealers who distribute heroin, fentanyl or opioids that cause death or serious injury to users.

As part of this initiative, local law enforcement officers are performing time-sensitive investigative techniques to preserve all evidence at the scene of an overdose death. Police contact the DEA at the early stages of an investigation and ensure that an autopsy of the decedent is performed. Investigators determine the events leading up to the death, the source of the drug involved, and the composition of the drug. Individuals responsible for distributing drugs causing overdose deaths will be prosecuted by federal or state authorities.

Since the beginning of 2016, as part of this initiative, the DEA, working with state and local counterparts, has conducted approximately 120 investigations, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office has prosecuted approximately 60 individuals.

Last week, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, DEA, Waterbury State’s Attorney and the Connecticut Office of the Chief Medical Examiner conducted opioid overdose death investigation training to approximately 180 police officers from across the state.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office also has formed a Heroin Action Education Team (HEAT), which has conducted opioid awareness presentations at numerous high schools and middle schools in Connecticut. The presentation typically includes an Assistant U.S. Attorney, a DEA special agent and a parent who has lost a child to a drug overdose. To date, these presentations have reached more than 15,000 students.

For more information on HEAT, please click here.

The HEAT presentations also include a showing of the FBI/DEA film “Chasing the Dragon,” and an opioid awareness video produced by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.