Two Juneau residents were arrested on drug-related charges, police say, after members of a regional anti-drug task force found 5,000 counterfeit oxycodone pills believed to contain fentanyl hidden in luggage.
Late Thursday night, Juneau residents Max Heinz Tarquino, 43, and Sabrina Lordess Jeter, 19, were arrested on two charges of second-degree misconduct involving a controlled substance, a class A felony and taken to Lemon Creek Correctional Center, according to the Juneau Police Department.
The arrest came after members of Southeast Alaska Cities Against Drugs task force last Thursday were notified that a pair of airline passengers were believed to be carrying narcotics on an airplane from Seattle to Juneau.
According to JPD spokesperson Lt. Krag Campbell, upon meeting the pair while exiting the plane at the Juneau International Airport, the two were taken to the JPD station for questioning and later arrested after authorities discovered the drugs with an estimated value of $150,000.
Campbell said authorities discovered 1,000 of the pills in a carry-on luggage, and 4,000 were located in checked luggage.
Campbell said the discovered narcotics and subsequent arrests are unrelated to any other recent drug arrests.
• Contact reporter Clarise Larson at clarise.larson@juneauempire.com or (651)-528-1807. Follow her on Twitter at @clariselarson.
