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Pinal County Deputies were called to a residence in the 1100 block of N. Justice Dr., Oracle, on Saturday, Dec. 16, at approximately 10 p.m. after the resident reported that someone was in distress.
Upon arrival, deputies found Vincent Chavez dead from an apparent drug overdose.
PCSO Public Information Officer Navideh Forghani said that deputies found drug paraphernalia at the scene and were treating the case as an overdose.
She told the San Manuel Miner that the case was reported to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency as part of the Heroin Enforcement Action Team (HEAT).
In early November, the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office announced that it had joined the DEA’s initiative to combat drug-related deaths.
Nearly 500 people have lost their lives from a suspected opioid overdose in Arizona in the last four months. The opioid and heroin epidemic is a battle impacting our communities, including Pinal County.
HEAT is an enforcement initiative developed by DEA’s Phoenix Field Division to tackle the evolving opioid epidemic at every level. In conjunction with the development of investigations targeting the highest-level heroin traffickers, the HEAT mission includes the pursuit of local drug traffickers directly responsible for overdose deaths. The DEA HEAT is examining all available reporting surrounding these deaths to pursue any investigative leads and tougher criminal charges.
The program was launched in 2016 and has been a success. In DEA’s partnership with local jurisdictions has helped successfully indict several defendants both federally, and at the local level.
“You cannot just go after these criminals with drug charges. They are killing people in our community. I want to send a message to those preying on our citizens that we will no longer settle for drug charges. We want them to know their next deal could land them behind bars for the rest of their lives,” said Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb.
“Every day, too many Arizonans are dying from opioid overdoses. The DEA will target those traffickers who inflict harm in our communities and relentlessly pursue those responsible for selling the drugs which cause the deaths of our loved ones.” said Doug Coleman, Special Agent in Charge of DEA in Arizona. “The DEA is proud to partner with the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office to expand our HEAT initiative and help bring to justice those who would harm the citizens of Pinal County.”
If you have a tip, please download the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office App from the App store on your smart phone. You will be able to submit your tip anonymously. You can also click on the following link to submit a tip anonymously to the DEA, https://www.dea.gov/ops/submit.php.
There are news or informational items frequently written by staff or submitted to the Copper Basin News, San Manuel Miner, Superior Sun, Pinal Nugget or Oracle Towne Crier for inclusion in our print or digital products. These items are not credited with an author.
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