Northern Colorado drug ring exposed after deputies uncover drugs' unique path into jail
A Northern Colorado drug trafficking organization was dismantled, law enforcement said after discovering the uniquely deceptive ways it was able to get drugs into the Larimer County Jail.
The Northern Colorado Drug Task Force on Friday arrested 12 people on suspicion of multiple felony and misdemeanor charges, including nine inmates and three other people accused of introducing drugs into the jail through U.S. Postal Service mail.
A Larimer County Jail deputy's observations of inmates led to an investigation by the task force that discovered fentanyl, methamphetamine and the opioid Suboxone strips in mail sent to inmates, according to a sheriff's office news release Tuesday afternoon.
The arrest and search warrants assert the drugs were being introduced through paper soaked in narcotics and via ink written on the letters, or were hidden in the seams of commercially available envelopes.
Jail inmates would then distribute the drugs to other inmates, according to the task force.
"This will make a significant impact on narcotics coming into the jail,'' said sheriff's office Lt. Ian Stewart, commander of the drug task force. "It's the same drug trafficking organization that we see on the outside of the jail that had a connection inside the jail.''
During Friday's search of the living quarters of jail inmates, contraband, including suspected drugs, were found, according to the sheriff's office.
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Stewart said jail staff at the end of 2021 began detecting an increase in drugs introduced into the jail that were not being detected by usual methods, such as body searches and screening and random canine searches.
A jail deputy became suspicious of the behavior of some inmates at that time. He believed activity involving an inmate’s incoming mail, phone calls and text messages via the inmate's electronic tablet contained coded language about drugs, including how to send them to inmates in jail and how inmates would pay those on the outside for the drugs.
In March, the deputy intercepted a letter mailed to an inmate and the paper tested presumptive positive for methamphetamine. Jail staff contacted the drug task force in April and “Operation Arts and Crafts” was initiated.
Stewart said introducing drugs into correctional facilities via paper soaked in narcotics and ink infused with narcotics are some of the emerging methods of distribution into jails. He said new testing techniques at the jail allow staff to more quickly identify drugs coming into the jail via these methods.
"Any drugs entering a jail is a concern, but this group was introducing enough drugs to make us very concerned,'' Stewart said. "It's a safety concern not only for staff but for other inmates.''
No jail staff were accused in the case, Stewart said.
He said the the task force has not been able to make a connection between the drugs' introduction and a drug overdose at the jail. Jail staff already this year have administered seven does of Narcan, a nasal spray used to treat overdoses in an emergency, according to the sheriff's office.
More changes at the jail: Larimer County Jail deputies to start wearing body cameras
Previous Coloradoan reporting said the sheriff's office estimates there were about 55 drug overdose deaths last year across Larimer County based on calls responded to by the drug task force. Investigators seized 10,066 fentanyl pills in 2019, but that dramatically increased to 155,738 fentanyl pills seized in 2021.
The bust prompted the jail to change how inmates can receive mail, including letters, pictures and drawings. Starting Wednesday, those items will be digitally scanned and delivered to inmates via tablets.
"I believe the result of this investigation and the new charges incurred by those involved will deter future attempts to traffic narcotics in the jail,'' jail division commander Cpt. Bobby Moll said. "Our jail deputies and the Northern Colorado Drug Task Force did an outstanding job to dismantle this drug trafficking organization.''
In addition to inmates being charged, the investigation allowed the drug task force to execute a search warrant Friday for a home in the 400 block of East 57th Street, Loveland, in unincorporated Larimer County. There, two individuals were arrested and evidence seized.
A third person was arrested Saturday in a vehicle in the 900 block of West Horsetooth Road in Fort Collins.
The sheriff's office said it is looking for multiple other individuals believed to be involved in the distribution ring.
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This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Drugs sent to Larimer jail inmates via mail, sheriff's office says
