Scrpino (podium) called drugs #1 public health issue in the country
VALHALLA – Westchester County law enforcement and District Attorney Anthony Scarpino, Jr.’s office are joining forces to establish an opioid/heroin task force to combat the increasing number of overdose deaths.
The task force will investigate and go after drug dealers, not those buying the narcotics. Anyone who sells drugs that lead to a person’s death will be charged with homicide, County Executive Robert Astorino said on Thursday.
“Our message to all the dirt bags out there who are pushing drugs at our kids and our community is that we are coming after you with a vengeance,” Astorino said.
Scarpino called the drug epidemic the number one public health threat in the country. In Westchester County alone, he said there has been a 61 percent increase in drug overdose deaths from 2009 to 2014.
Scarpino warned that the drugs being peddled are even stronger than they used to be because many are being laced with the deadly drug fentanyl.
