Chief: Scott City police find fentanyl

A Scott City traffic stop resulted in first-degree drug trafficking charges and the seizure of 57 grams of a substance that field-tested positive for the presence of fentanyl.

Scott City officer James Haney made a traffic stop Thursday, March 7, of a vehicle with several passengers, one of whom had three outstanding warrants.

James Hennecke of Scott City was arrested and charged with the Class B felony on the trafficking charge, which could result in up to 15 years, but no less than five if convicted, in prison. Judge Robert Horack denied bond.

During the traffic stop, officers searched one of the female occupants, who, according to a probable-cause statement, possessed two plastic bags containing a "white crystal-like substance" in her pockets. The two plastic bags weighed 56.96 grams. Officers also found a glass pipe that field-tested positive for the presence of fentanyl.

Scott City officers requested assistance from the Cape Girardeau Police Department K-9 unit, and the search found more than 4 grams of drugs, which field-tested positive for the presence of fentanyl.

Fentanyl is a synthetic drug that is often mixed with other drugs, including heroin and methamphetamine. Just 2 milligrams can be fatal,depending on body size, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration. Fentanyl is a rather cheap drug that can be manufactured, but it’s estimated to be 100 times more potent than morphine. Lethal doses of fentanyl have been on the rise for several years.

Scott City police Chief Chris Griggs said this was a large amount of drugs to find in a vehicle stop, adding fentanyl is basically poison. He said he was proud of his officers for "being proactive and seizing that much drugs. You have to think about how much of those drugs were being distributed in Scott City."

Online court records show that Hennecke pleaded guilty to drug possession charges in June and was sentenced to the custody of the Missouri Department of Corrections for five years in a case out of Cape Girardeau County.

Chief Chris Griggs said more charges are expected relating to the drugs found during the traffic stop.