Police arrested a man and a woman suspected of dealing fentanyl in the Somerset County area, authorities said.
The arrests occurred fives days apart — July 12 and July 16 — but police believe the local pair coordinated to sell the highly potent drug, according to Sheriff Dale Lancaster of the Somerset County Sheriff’s Office.
Nicholas Culver, 38, of Hartland was arrested July 12 after officers executed a search warrant on his 2006 Mercedes Benz on Route 2 in Canaan, Lancaster said. Inside, police found over 30 grams of fentanyl, more than $3,000 in suspected drug money and a loaded 9mm pistol, he said. When officers searched the man’s house the next days, they found seven more handguns and more than $16,o00 in cash.
Five days later, police executed a warrant at the Canaan home of Culver’s alleged partner, Amanda Cowette, Lancaster said. Police arrested Cowette, 24, after they discovered and confiscated more than 100 grams of fentanyl, a few Xanax pills, 2 bullet proof vests, a 9mm handgun, nearly $7,500 in suspected drug profits and a 2006 BMW sport utility car, Lancaster said. The value of the fentanyl is estimated to be around $15,000.
The pair was booked at the Somerset County Jail in Madison, and both face felony drug trafficking charges, and including one count each for aggravating trafficking because they drugs were found near firearms, Lancaster said.
The investigation is part of the sheriff’s office ongoing investigation into fentanyl trafficking in Somerset County.
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