By HEATHER RUPPE
Nearly $180,000 in drugs and guns have been seized and taken off of Colleton County streets since January 1st and is all a part of a proactive effort aimed at getting rid of drugs and reducing street violence in the county.
In all, $179,993 in illegal drugs and guns have been seized by sheriff's office deputies. This has been throughout the county and has been occurring since January 1st of this year. This tally of confiscated drugs and weapons was done on Friday, September 9th.
The drugs seized include 119 grams of crack cocaine; 49 grams of heroin; 636 grams of marijuana; 232 various pills or controlled narcotics; 112 tablets of ecstasy; 465 grams of meth; and 1,062 grams of cocaine.
Additionally, 23 illegal guns were taken from suspects. These guns were seized during traffic stops and during subsequent search warrants of private houses.
"We're continuing to make a dent in the drug trafficking taking place in our community," said Shalane Lowes, spokeswoman for the Colleton County Sheriff's Office. Lowes called the seizures the result of a "multi-agency effort" that she says is making "substantial progress."
According to Lowes, all seized drugs and weapons are part of proactive policing, a term used by local authorities to describe traffic stops or search warrants done without deputies being dispatched to a house or incident. "Deputies initiate traffic stops on their own due to traffic infractions, which leads to other charges," she said.
The sheriff's office also gives monthly updates to the public on these proactive patrols, which Lowes says are conducted throughout the county.
"The Colleton Sheriff's Office wants our citizens to know that our deputies are visible and working hard to combat drugs and crime," said Colleton County Sheriff Buddy Hill.
"Our citizens' safety is our number one priority. Being visible means our deputies are reassuring our residents that we are working hard to prevent crime before taking place and deterring criminals from attempting to break the law."
All drugs that the Colleton County Sheriff's Office seizes are taken to the State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) for destruction, once they are no longer needed as evidence.
Firearms that are seized and that are illegal, either because the serial number has been removed or the barrel has been sawed off, are destroyed. According to Lowes, other firearms seized for weapon violations and cannot be returned to anyone are presented to a law enforcement supply business, a federally licensed firearm dealer. This dealer then gives the local sheriff's office a credit for the purchase or exchange of new law enforcement equipment.
