The Athens County Sheriff is cracking down on drug trafficking

The Athens County Sheriff's Office is increasing its anti-drug trafficking efforts in Athens County and surrounding counties to ensure the safety of the public. The sheriff's office arrested a woman on Sept. 13 who was the subject of a long-running drug investigation, prompting the effort.

Sheriff Rodney Smith said the arrest was a chase after a traffic stop that lasted several minutes in which the woman endangered not only herself but also officers and other civilians.

Smith said Athens County has a drug task force consisting of the district attorney's office, Athens police and the sheriff's office.

Smith said their main goal is to reduce the number of drug dealers and users in Athens.

“It’s like playing Whack A Mole,” Smith said. “We are targeting the people who are smuggling drugs. We go back to where they are if someone is in Michigan or Columbus selling drugs to Athens County. We can go there and actually arrest them and try to get them out of the equation.”

Smith said it feels like a continuous effort and the task force is never finished.

“This is about keeping our community safe,” Smith said. “We can reduce the amount of medicine coming into our jurisdiction. It just makes everything safer for our citizens.”

The task force consists of seven investigators who each focus on crimes against children and property crimes, Smith said.

Athens County Sheriff's Department press release dated September 19th regarding the search of a Jacksonville resident's home which resulted in the discovery of items related to the use of illegal drugs and weapons.

Smith said while drug trafficking is a problem, they place equal emphasis on low-level drug houses and drug users.

“When I talk about the drug houses on the lower levels, that's where we see the drug overdoses and we find stolen property, a lot of people with search warrants and a lot of people disrupting neighborhoods,” Smith said.

Smith said the task force is trying to get those who need it into treatment programs if they qualify. He said smaller drug houses are more common in Athens than drug dealers.

“This case should serve as a warning to others,” Smith wrote in a news release. “If you continue to deal drugs in Athens County, we will come after you.”

Smith said drug trafficking and drugs in general are a problem, with 85 to 90 percent of all crimes being drug-related.

“I often tell people that sometimes taking drugs robs you of happiness because the only thing you want is the next fix,” Smith said. “We strongly advise people if they have never tried any narcotics or drugs to never try them because it is hard to get off them.”

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