April 1, 2022- 8:05 p.m.
Mississippi – The Vicksburg Police Department on Friday morning announced its narcotics division had seized $65,000 worth of drugs and paraphernalia as part of “Operation Victory,” which was conducted on Thursday.
In total, VPD seized 11 one-pound, shrink-wrapped bags of marijuana, with an estimated street value of $55,000; $7,000 worth of methamphetamine and ecstasy; $3,500 of cocaine; and a bottle of codeine cough syrup.
The bust was the result of a six-month investigation into drug operations at a residence in the 3000 block of Victory Avenue.
The department also seized four cell phones, which investigators will dump information from to track down more individuals involved in the trafficking of drugs to Vicksburg; car keys; two firearms; more than $2,000 cash; a mid-2000s Ford Escape; a hat; and a shrinkwrap machine.
Investigator Mario Grady said a total of five individuals have been charged in connection to the operation. Their identities will be released Friday afternoon pending an initial court appearance.
Grady said VPD is aware that the Victory Street residence isn’t the only site where illegal drug activity is taking place in the city, and more operations like this one are in the works.
“Anybody that has drug activity going on in their neighborhoods, go ahead and contact (the narcotics division). Contact the Action Line and they’ll contact me,” Grady said. “People have been calling, and said it looked like we hadn’t been doing anything. We were just waiting on the right time to hit this particular location.”
Vicksburg Police Chief Penny Jones also issued a warning, but this one was aimed at parents. Many of the items seized were in brightly colored packages or appeared to be the same size and shape as candy, she said, making it attractive to children.
“For our children, some of the things that we have seized, just me as an adult looking at it, I would actually think that this is something I could actually take and think it would be candy or some type of food,” Jones said. “So I definitely want the parents to be aware of what the children are bringing inside the home.
