Phoenix police record fentanyl bust in Avondale

Phoenix authorities announced on Sept. 23, 2022, that they had seized nearly 1 million fentanyl pills from a car and a home in Avondale.

With deadly overdoses on the rise, fentanyl has become a high priority among law enforcement.

And the growing prevalence of the synthetic opioid is underscored by what Phoenix police are calling the largest fentanyl seizure in the department’s history.

Phoenix authorities on Friday announced that they had seized nearly 1 million fentanyl pills from a car and a home in Avondale.

Sergeant Brian Bowers says the bust started with a traffic stop that uncovered half-a-million pills.

“We have our drug-enforcement bureau detectives that were just following up on leads. They observed a lot of the stuff that led to a search warrant and a traffic stop,” he says.

A subsequent search of the home yielded about 500,000 more pills.

Detectives said they arrested two men, including the owner of the car. Their names have not been released, but authorities say they have been booked into Maricopa County jail.