PHOENIX — A Valley family made a shocking and potentially deadly discovery after a trip to a local thrift shop left them with a sack full of fentanyl.
Special Agent Cheri Oz with the Drug Enforcement Administration said, while this is a terribly scary situation for any parent, these two did the right thing by inspecting and cleaning the toy before they gave it to their daughter.
In doing so, they found the fentanyl pills in a sandwich bag and called Phoenix Police.
The family didn't want to do an interview but officers said they did the right thing by calling them immediately.
"If you find a sealed bag like that, do not open the bag and do not try the pills," Oz said.
"It's just sad that a family was scared and put at risk. We do our very best to intercept everything we can, we work really hard to keep citizens of this country safe and people of Maricopa County safe."
Oz also emphasized that while the situation is shocking, it's not the norm.
"Please do not throw away all of your kid's toys, this is an anomaly. Most of the drug traffickers will ensure the delivery of contraband into other drug traffickers' hands," she added.
Phoenix Police posted the discovery on Facebook, praising the parents for properly checking the toy, prior to handing it over to their little one.
Oz noted that this should never happen to any family but thankfully police now have possession of 5,000 illegal pills.
"Each of those pills has the potential to kill one or two people," she said.
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