Drug found in THP vehicle leads to fentanyl scare

DECATURVILLE, Tenn. — Local law enforcement faced a potentially dangerous situation after drugs were found in a Tennessee Highway Patrol vehicle.

When a state trooper brought a suspect to the Decatur County Jail Friday morning, he left behind a crushed pill in the back of the vehicle.

“I called one of my investigators, and they brought out a test kit to test it and see what it was. The coloration in the test kit indicated that it could be fentanyl, but we weren’t quite sure,” Decatur County Sheriff Keith Byrd said.

Good news: the drug turned out to not be fentanyl. The sheriff says they weren’t taking a chance anyway.

“I went outside, and the hazmat people were here. The fire department was here. EMS was here. They had the trooper’s car roped off,” Byrd said.

They also bagged the suspect’s clothes and checked out the state trooper.

“Fentanyl is so powerful that just a few grams can kill you,” Sheriff Byrd said. “Fentanyl is not one of those things to play around with. It is the most powerful of the powerful drugs.”

While the drug was not fentanyl, the sheriff’s office still doesn’t know what the drug actually was or why it would test positive for fentanyl.