Three more people have been arrested and charged with trafficking in prescription pain medications.
According to a press release from the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office Drug Unit, investigators set up surveillance after being alerted to the drug diversion taking place. They observed a meet between three people, and when the three parted, investigators moved in, said a spokesman for the drug unit.
During the traffic stop, investigators searched the vehicle and found 99 Oxycodone pills hidden under a seat in the vehicle, said the release. Joseph Foster, 22, of Hopkins Seafood Road, Belhaven, and Jessica Cartwright, 19, of Market Street, Washington, were arrested and charged with two counts of trafficking in opium.
After Cartwright and Joseph Foster’s arrests, investigators approached the woman they had met with, Anna Foster. Anna Foster was carrying a pill bottle, filled earlier that day with a prescription for 150 Oxycodone pills, of which only 47 were left, said the release. Anna Foster, 36, of VOA Road, Washington, was arrested and charged with three counts of trafficking in opium.
Under North Carolina’s structured sentencing, each count of Level I trafficking in opium means a minimum mandatory sentence of 70 to 84 months in prison. By law, Joseph Foster and Jessica Cartwright face a minimum sentence of 11 years; Anna Foster faces a sentence of 17 and a half years, for illegally selling prescription paid medication.