A joint effort has led to the arrest of nine people who law enforcement say conspired to bring heroin and cocaine to northern Michigan.
Michigan State Police allege drugs flowed from the Detroit-area to Traverse City and Cadillac for years.
“They are thinking maybe seven million dollars worth of heroin was brought up into northern Michigan during that five year process,” says First Lieutenant Michael Shaw with MSP. “So we’ve shut down a major, major source into both Traverse City and Cadillac.”
Local, state and federal authorities — including the regional drug task force called the Traverse Narcotics Team — made the arrests in Grand Traverse County and Wayne County on Wednesday.
"These individuals would bring the narcotics up from [Detroit] and use their runners up in Traverse City and Cadillac to distribute the drugs to all of northern Michigan," says Shaw.
Authorities named the effort “Operation Sweetie,” after a nickname of one of the suspects.