East Texas law enforcement crack down on illegal promethazine use after spike

HENDERSON, Texas (KETK) – Methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana are among the usual substances seized in a drug seizure in east Texas, but the distribution of promethazine is now on the rise in the region.

A Henderson police officer recently performed a routine traffic stop and found 35 bottles of promethazine valued at nearly $ 32,000. One person was also arrested as a result of the incident and remains in Rusk County Jail.

Promethazine is a medicine that is usually mixed before it is sold.

Each bottle has a market value of $ 800 to $ 1,000.

Henderson’s police officer, Kevin Bisnette, made the recent discovery.

“Oh this year yeah, that’s the maximum I got this year at a traffic check,” he said.

Law enforcement in East Texas is seeing an increase in various local communities.

“We’ve actually started to see an increase in promethazine here recently, with different agencies here in East Texas and South Texas,” Bisnette said.

First responders added that the drug has been around for years.

“It’s starting to make a big comeback now,” said Jon Randolph, Mount Enterprise Marshal.

For this reason, the Henderson Police Department and the Mount Enterprise Marshal have created a task force to stop drug trafficking in the area. They focus on promethazine.

“These three cases that I received were actually on our way to a drugstore, so they were stolen from a drug truck,” Bisnette said.

He also said the drugs were on their way north to states like Illinois and Michigan. The problem is what happens along the way.

“It lands in our little towns, in between and it saturates these little areas because they’re good hubs for them to hide these narcotics and stuff like that,” Bisnette said.

When these substances enter cities, children can become the preferred targets.

“You know, parents just need to really watch their kids. If you know, they come home in a lethargic role and stuff like that, that’s something they need to look into, ”Bisnette said.

He also mentioned that he wanted to stop promethazine before it took over our community.

“You overdose on people every day. You meet people you know, you become addicted to them. This stuff is horrible, ”Bisnette said.

Promethazine is usually found in your prescription cough syrup. When mixed with other drugs, it is known for its tranquilizing and euphoric effects.