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Ocean City Sees Spike In Heroin Arrests

By: Bryan Russo // December 5, 2012
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An increase in the use of heroin has been tied to a crackdown on prescription opiates.
Eric Molina: http://www.flickr.com/photos/iamagenious/2319220304/
An increase in the use of heroin has been tied to a crackdown on prescription opiates.

Police in Ocean City, Md., say 23 people there have been indicted on drug charges as the beach resort deals with a spike in use of heroin.

Authorities say these latest indictments follow a six-week undercover investigation, in which officers made about 72 drug buys. Police say 17 of those indicted are in custody, and they're still looking for six others.

A police spokesman says Ocean City has seen heroin cases jump nearly 550 percent in 2012, compared with last year. And he says investigators think the increase is linked to an ongoing crackdown on prescription drug abuse. That's prompting some prescription drug addicts to turn to illegal opiates instead and heroin reportedly is the cheapest and easiest to get on the street.

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