US authorities made a sinister discovery when they seized a yellow Lego box in Manhattan last month.
Inside the box were 15,000 rainbow-coloured fentanyl pills and prosecutors have commented on the alarming nature of the find.
NYC Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget G. Brennan said: “Using happy colours to make a deadly drug seem fun and harmless is a new low, even for the Mexican cartels.”
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US Drug Enforcement Administration authorities have said the fentanyl seizure is the largest in NYC’s history and Brennan also pointed out that the drug is involved in more than 80% of NYC’s overdose deaths.
Federal authorities have accused 48-year-old Latesha Bush, a New Jersey woman, of concealing the pills in a Lego box as part of a drug trafficking scheme.
Last week, Bush pleaded not guilty at an arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court, CNN reports.
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She was charged with one count of first-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and one count of third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance.
She will next appear in court on 18 October and the New York County Defender Services told CNN ‘no comment’ on behalf of Bush’s attorney.
UNILAD has reached out to the New York County Defender Services for further comment.
Of the colourful pills, Brennan added: “If you take any drug sold on the street or through the internet, regardless of its medicinal markings or festive appearance, you risk your life.”
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New York Police Commissioner Keechant L. Sewell echoed: “Disguising fentanyl as candy – and concealing it in children’s toys – will never hide the fact that fentanyl is a deadly poison that harms our communities, our families, and our city.”
Bush was arrested on 28 September as part of an ongoing narcotics trafficking investigation.
She was allegedly seen entering a vehicle in Manhattan while carrying a black tote bag with a large object inside.
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Officers stopped the vehicle and say they found Bush sitting in the back seat with two black tote bags and a yellow Lego container that allegedly contained ‘approximately 15,000 round multi-coloured alleged fentanyl pills marked M30’.
Investigators think the pills came from Mexico and say the incident highlights the tactics of two major cartels in particular.
Back in August, the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) released a warning about the emerging trend of rainbow coloured fentanyl pills, which the agency called ‘alarming’.
“[This is] a deliberate effort by drug traffickers to drive addiction among kids and young adults,” the DEA added.
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Aisha Nozari