Irondale police seize 2.2 pounds of heroin worth $100k hidden under bed and in drywall
Irondale police raided a Birmingham home and found more than 2 pounds of heroin, the largest seizure by the department in the city's history, authorities said today.
Irondale narcotics investigators carried out a search warrant about 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at a home in the 8000 block of Sixth Avenue North in Birmingham's East Lake area. Once inside, they found heroin hidden under a bed, in a kitchen cabinet and in a backpack tucked into a hole in the sheetrock wall.
Authorities confiscated 2.2 pounds of heroin, a gun, chemicals and packaging for the drug, as well as a hydraulic press used to form the heroin into a brick. Irondale police Chief Ken Atkinson said the drugs are worth more than $100,000 on the street.
Wilfred Orlando Law II, 32, was taken into custody. He is charged with drug trafficking and possession of drug paraphernalia.
So far this year, there have been five heroin overdoses in Irondale, one of them fatal. In all of Jefferson County, there were 55 confirmed heroin deaths between Jan. 1 and June 30, according to the Jefferson County Coroner's Office.
"When you're talking about heroin, a lot of people don't know what they're getting,'' Atkinson said. "They take it, and bad things happen."
"2.2 pounds is a lot of heroin that was going to be broken down and sold to a whole bunch of different people,'' the chief said. "Without question, we've prevented a lot of people from getting a hold of this heroin. Certainly I think there's a good chance we saved somebody's life."
Atkinson said the investigation is ongoing. He said there could be more arrests and drug seizures. "I have a pretty good feeling it's going to lead us to other things,'' he said.
Law will be held in the Jefferson County Jail with bond set at $500,000. He has previous convictions on DUI. He was arrested a decade ago for attempted murder, but the charges were dropped. He also has previous cocaine and marijuana arrests, but court records don't indicate the outcome of those cases.
"It's a very significant arrest,'' Atkinson said. "We have this individual behind bars and we have this drug off the streets of Birmingham, Irondale and many surrounding communities."
Irondale police raided a Birmingham home and found more than 2 pounds of heroin, the largest seizure by the department in the city's history, authorities said today.
Irondale narcotics investigators carried out a search warrant about 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at a home in the 8000 block of Sixth Avenue North in Birmingham's East Lake area. Once inside, they found heroin hidden under a bed, in a kitchen cabinet and in a backpack tucked into a hole in the sheetrock wall.
Authorities confiscated 2.2 pounds of heroin, a gun, chemicals and packaging for the drug, as well as a hydraulic press used to form the heroin into a brick. Irondale police Chief Ken Atkinson said the drugs are worth more than $100,000 on the street.
Wilfred Orlando Law II, 32, was taken into custody. He is charged with drug trafficking and possession of drug paraphernalia.
So far this year, there have been five heroin overdoses in Irondale, one of them fatal. In all of Jefferson County, there were 55 confirmed heroin deaths between Jan. 1 and June 30, according to the Jefferson County Coroner's Office.
"When you're talking about heroin, a lot of people don't know what they're getting,'' Atkinson said. "They take it, and bad things happen."
"2.2 pounds is a lot of heroin that was going to be broken down and sold to a whole bunch of different people,'' the chief said. "Without question, we've prevented a lot of people from getting a hold of this heroin. Certainly I think there's a good chance we saved somebody's life."
Atkinson said the investigation is ongoing. He said there could be more arrests and drug seizures. "I have a pretty good feeling it's going to lead us to other things,'' he said.
Law will be held in the Jefferson County Jail with bond set at $500,000. He has previous convictions on DUI. He was arrested a decade ago for attempted murder, but the charges were dropped. He also has previous cocaine and marijuana arrests, but court records don't indicate the outcome of those cases.
"It's a very significant arrest,'' Atkinson said. "We have this individual behind bars and we have this drug off the streets of Birmingham, Irondale and many surrounding communities."
