This past Tuesday, Porter County Multi-Enforcement Group (PCMEG), along with the Drug Enforcement Association Merrillville Resident Office (DEA) and Indiana HIDTA, executed three federal search warrants on three separate addresses located in Gary. This operation was in response to the ongoing investigations of the Heroin Overdose Response Project.
In addition to the federal search warrants, three federal arrest warrants were also served on:
*52 year old Tony Petty, Distribution of heroin and aiding and abetting
*45 year old Augustine Pike, Distribution of heroin and aiding and abetting
*55 year old Leroy Coleman, Distribution of heroin
During the execution of the search and arrest warrants, 25 year old Katrina Owens and 37 year old Lamont Coleman were taken into custody on charges of conspiracy to distribute heroin.
Throughout the course of this 10-month investigation from PCMEG, confidential informants and undercover investigators conducted controlled buys of heroin from the members of the drug-trafficking organization. On average, 10 to 50 residents from Laporte, Lake, and Porter Counties were purchasing narcotics from this organization per day, which resulted in several non-fatal overdoses.