MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – An Ohio man, who was living in Morgantown, has been arrested for his alleged role in the distribution of counterfeit heroin-laced vape pens that caused two high school students to overdose and be hospitalized in a 24-hour period, according to a release from the Morgantown Police Department.
On Thursday, while following up leads that were generated during the investigation, officers with the Morgantown Police Department and Mon-Metro Drug Task Force were able to identify and confirm another source of the suspected vape pens and vaping solutions.
On Wednesday, at approximately 6 p.m., a Morgantown Police Officer conducted a traffic stop on a pickup truck being driven by Tristan Anderson, 23, of Bolivar, Ohio, according to the release. Following a positive alert of the scent of narcotics by a K-9 unit on scene, officers conducted a search and recovered more than 2.5 pounds pounds of marijuana, scales and packaging materials, police said.
The release stated that detectives continued the investigation and obtained a search warrant for Anderson’s local address on Virginia Avenue in Morgantown. Police said that during the search warrant, detectives recovered more than 25 pounds of marijuana, more than 70 bottles of highly concentrated Tetrahydrocannabiol (THC) oils and other controlled substances, more than 300 “TKO” labeled vaping cartridges and more than 100 THC edible candies.
“TKO” vaping cartridges were identified by Morgantown Police to be the contaminated vaping cartridges that caused the overdoses and hospitalizations of the two high school students, according to police.
Anderson has been charged with possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance and is pending arraignment, according to the release. He is currently being held at North Central Regional Jail.
