News (Media Awareness Project) - US FL: Police Say Addicts Often Begin With Legitimate Need |
| Title: | US FL: Police Say Addicts Often Begin With Legitimate Need |
| Published On: | 2003-07-30 |
| Source: | Florida Today (FL) |
| Fetched On: | 2008-08-24 18:16:34 |
POLICE SAY ADDICTS OFTEN BEGIN WITH LEGITIMATE NEED
MELBOURNE -- The arrest of a Melbourne doctor on OxyContin trafficking
charges led police to voice increasing concerns about prescription
medications and how they find their way into the wrong hands.
Melbourne police arrested Dr. Sarfraz A. Mirza and his assistant, Jackie
Leblanc on Tuesday at Mirza's We Really Care Pain Clinic on Sarno Road.
Mirza was charged with 11 counts of trafficking in OxyContin and delivery
and sale of other controlled substances.
Sgt. Scott Behringer of the Brevard County Sheriff's Office special
investigations unit said people who become addicted to the drug usually
start with a legitimate prescription for the drug to handle pain. But
sometimes, they get hooked, he said.
"Heroin users often use OxyContin as a substitute," Behringer said.
OxyContin is a painkiller derived from opiate, and is considered a
"feel-good" drug that has become problematic for police in recent years,
Satellite Beach police Detective James Driggers said.
It also contains the same properties as the generic drug called Oxycodone,
which is the name the Brevard County Medical Examiner's Office uses when
listing the number of deaths associated with the drug.
According to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, there were 57
deaths related to Oxycodone in 2002, compared with 38 in 2001.
OxyContin, or Oxycodone, dealers work differently from other drug dealers,
Driggers said.
"These guys have a tight network. They don't stand on street corners.
People will travel and go to multiple doctors and these doctors become
known," he said.
Driggers said some people may not understand the impact of prescription
drug abuse because of the way dealers work.
"But now, we're getting the overdoses and the arrests, so it's coming to
light," he said.
Criminal behavior sometimes has been traced to drug addiction, Behringer said.
"People rob to support a habit," he said. "Some murders can be traced to a
drug deal. Once the person is addicted, they will do whatever necessary to
obtain that drug."
MELBOURNE -- The arrest of a Melbourne doctor on OxyContin trafficking
charges led police to voice increasing concerns about prescription
medications and how they find their way into the wrong hands.
Melbourne police arrested Dr. Sarfraz A. Mirza and his assistant, Jackie
Leblanc on Tuesday at Mirza's We Really Care Pain Clinic on Sarno Road.
Mirza was charged with 11 counts of trafficking in OxyContin and delivery
and sale of other controlled substances.
Sgt. Scott Behringer of the Brevard County Sheriff's Office special
investigations unit said people who become addicted to the drug usually
start with a legitimate prescription for the drug to handle pain. But
sometimes, they get hooked, he said.
"Heroin users often use OxyContin as a substitute," Behringer said.
OxyContin is a painkiller derived from opiate, and is considered a
"feel-good" drug that has become problematic for police in recent years,
Satellite Beach police Detective James Driggers said.
It also contains the same properties as the generic drug called Oxycodone,
which is the name the Brevard County Medical Examiner's Office uses when
listing the number of deaths associated with the drug.
According to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, there were 57
deaths related to Oxycodone in 2002, compared with 38 in 2001.
OxyContin, or Oxycodone, dealers work differently from other drug dealers,
Driggers said.
"These guys have a tight network. They don't stand on street corners.
People will travel and go to multiple doctors and these doctors become
known," he said.
Driggers said some people may not understand the impact of prescription
drug abuse because of the way dealers work.
"But now, we're getting the overdoses and the arrests, so it's coming to
light," he said.
Criminal behavior sometimes has been traced to drug addiction, Behringer said.
"People rob to support a habit," he said. "Some murders can be traced to a
drug deal. Once the person is addicted, they will do whatever necessary to
obtain that drug."
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