The Joint Fentanyl Impact Team has been hard at work for several months, but it was officially announced to the public this week.
The team is a collaborative effort involving the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, Kansas Attorney General’s Office, Kansas Highway Patrol and federal Homeland Security Investigations agency. Comprised of KBI special agents, a new KBI K-9 unit, Highway Patrol troopers and Homeland Security Investigations agents, the goal is to identify and halt trafficking and distribution networks as overdose numbers explode across Kansas and the nation at large. Attorney General Kris Kobach says the new KBI K-9 team will work to stop drugs coming into Kansas via road, rail, air and mail.
The official announcement of JFIT comes shortly after Lyon County concluded its first fentanyl distribution case of note. Terry Cummings was sentenced to nearly seven years for distribution after a traffic stop last year. It also comes after JFIT had its first major seizure, 25,000 counterfeit oxycodone pills weighing about 12 pounds in Wichita last month.
