Woman with ‘ghost’ face tattoo had enough fentanyl to kill more than 500K people: Cops

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Katelin Abernathy, 25, was busted by the Spartanburg Sheriff’s Office in South Carolina allegedly in possession of over a kilogram of fentanyl, which would be enough to kill 500,000 people. (Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office)

A woman accused of selling drugs while sporting a “ghost” tattoo across her forehead apparently wasn’t so invisible to cops.

Police in South Carolina busted her with more than a kilogram of fentanyl, which would be enough to kill over half a million people, according to the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office.

The sheriff’s office said in a Facebook post on Wednesday that deputies had 25-year-old Katelin Lee Abernathy under surveillance for suspected drug dealing. Deputies conducted a traffic stop in the Boiling Springs area of Spartanburg County and a K9 alerted them that drugs were in the car.

A search uncovered 941 grams of suspected fentanyl, 20 grams of suspected crystal meth, a Glock pistol and a rife, the post said.

Deputies then obtained a search warrant for a storage unit Abernathy used and uncovered another 531 grams of suspected fentanyl, 3 handguns and four long guns, deputies said.

Abernathy was arrested on charges of trafficking methamphetamine, trafficking fentanyl and possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime. She was taken to jail where she’s being held without bond. Homeland Security Investigations, Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office, South Carolina Law Enforcement Division and Union County Sheriff’s Office all assisted in the investigation.

Court records show Abernathy was arrested three separate times on drug-related charges last year.

More on Law&Crime: ’29-time convicted felon’ apparently tried faking a heart attack to get out of fentanyl trafficking arrest and failed miserably

The Drug Enforcement Administration said in 2021 that a kilo of fentanyl can kill up to 500,000 people. Drug trafficking organizations typically distribute fentanyl by the kilogram, the DEA said.

Last year set a new record for fentanyl-related deaths. NPR, citing Center for Disease Control and Prevention data, reported there were over 100,000 overdose deaths in 2022, many of which were attributable to fentanyl.

Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, told NPR it was a concerning number of deaths.

“One could have expected that as many of the challenges imposed by the COVID pandemic were resolved, we would see a deep dive in the number of overdose deaths. It’s concerning we have not seen that.”

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