Fort Worth police seize 28,000 fentanyl pills, $100K in cash during drug bust
Rainbow fentanyl m30 pills. (DEA)
FORT WORTH, Texas - Narcotics officers helped take more than 28,000 fentanyl pills, 29 pounds of marijuana and 10 guns off the streets of Fort Worth.
Melvin Kellough Jr. and Atomic Greene were arrested this past Thursday as part of an ongoing drug investigation.
According to court documents, investigators worked with an informant who had been buying large amounts of fentanyl pills from a source in Fort Worth over the past few months. The informant gave investigators a cellphone number for that source.
The investigators used the cellphone number to identify Kellough. They also arranged a meeting to buy drugs from Kellough through the informant.
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"During this telephone call, Kellough informed the CD [informant] that he had approximately 25,000 fentanlyl pills that he could deliver to the CD. Kellough further informed the CD that he was going to have his girlfriend bring the fentanyl pills to him as it appeared Kellough was not in possession of the pills at the time," the criminal complaint states.
Fort Worth investigators began conducting surveillance on Kellough and his girlfriend. They watched as she appeared to bring him the pills, and then he drove to the meeting location.
SWAT officers arrested Kellough after he arrived at the meeting location. Greene, who was in the car with Kellough, was also arrested.
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According to the criminal complaint, officers found the 25,000 fentanyl pills, along with two handguns and an AR-15-style rifle, as they arrested Kellough and Greene.
They also searched Kellough’s apartment and found an additional 3,000 fentanyl pills, 29 pounds of marijuana, seven guns and more than $100,000 in cash.
Both Kellough and Greene are now facing federal charges for the possession of fentanyl with the intent to distribute.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in Texas, the incidence of fentanyl-related deaths has climbed sharply, with 214 deaths attributed to fentanyl in 2018 and 1,672 fentanyl-related deaths in 2021 according to provisional data.
Tips to prevent drug overdoses
- Never use illicit or other drugs purchased on the street or of unknown origin.
- Adults are encouraged to talk to children and teens about the dangers of ingesting unknown substances.
- Keep all prescription medications and other drugs out of the reach of children.Contact 9-1-1 if there is an emergency.
- Contact your healthcare provider or the Texas Poison Center Network at 1-800-222-1222 if you are experiencing any adverse health effects or have questions or concerns about exposure to fentanyl or opioid overdose.
- Individuals and organizations can access naloxone (opioid reversal agent) through the state’s distribution program: morenarcanplease.com.
For more information on where and how to report an overdose, see dshs.texas.gov/estb/poison/overdose.