With intense national scrutiny focused on prescription drug abuse, a recent local arrest reminds us that prescription drugs can be obtained on the internet as well as the streets, and the legal and medical consequences can be just as harsh.
Earlier this month, the Lake County Sheriff’s Gang Task Force, along with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security investigations, concluded an investigation into a Hawthorne Woods man who was allegedly illegally acquiring a large amount of Tramadol, a controlled prescription pain medication, through the internet.
Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran said his department’s cyber investigators attempt to monitor illegal online drug purchases, as well as child pornography and white-collar internet crime.
“We’ve recently seen a trend utilizing the internet to purchase illegal drugs,” Curran said when asked about the arrest. “This is known to law enforcement and our Gang Task Force actively investigates those using the internet to purchase these poisons.”
In the most recent case, Randall T. Swansen, 41, was charged for allegedly being in possession of over 700 Tramadol tablets that authorities said were purchased from an online site. He has posted bond and is free from custody pending a court date.
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Swansen was arrested and charged with unlawful possession of a controlled substance, a Class 4 felony that can result in a sentence ranging from probation to three years in prison upon conviction, according to reports.
Sheriff’s Office officials said that since Swansen’s arrest May 9, members of the Sheriff’s Gang Task Force have intercepted additional packages sent to his residence containing over 2,100 tablets of tramadol.
Lake County Coroner Dr. Howard Cooper said Tramadol, “can definitely cause death in high doses.”
Label warnings for the drug, which is a narcotic-like pain reliever used to treat moderate to severe pain, also state that its use in combination with alcohol or certain other prescription drugs, including sedatives, can lead to breathing difficulties and death.
Cooper said purchasing illicit drugs on the internet has something in common with purchasing drugs on the street — you can’t be sure what you are getting.
He said even those legally filling prescription drugs online should make sure they are doing so through a reputable, legal site or program.
Official Prom Escorts
On a brighter subject, with prom season drawing to a close, it’s worth noting sheriff’s deputies made the event a little more special for a student at Warren Township High School, his family and his friends.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office received an inquiry from Warren High School seniors Kassie Bout and Jacob Hernandez as to whether the office could provide an official police escort to the school’s prom for both the couple and their friend, senior Matt Stanford, who was attending prom with them.
According to Sgt. Sara Balmes, Matt has a cognitive disability, and had a challenging time while living in Washington State before moving with his mother to Gurnee and attending Warren.
Kassie and Jacob wanted to help Matt go to prom in style, and in addition to taking him with them, they secured the escort they had hoped for.
Balmes said that on May 12, with the approval of Sheriff Curran, Deputy Stephen Campobasso arrived at Matt’s home in a new Lake County Sheriff’s Office police interceptor to escort the trio to the senior prom.
Surrounded by loved ones and curious neighbors, Matt, Kassie and Jacob arrived at their prom “in style,” Balmes said. Further, sheriff’s deputies Roxana Stancioiu and Ricardo Navarro also came to the event to join the group for formal pictures.
Balmes said that, in appreciation, Kassie made “police survival goodie bags” for Curran and Campobasso.
The group reportedly had a great time, and a large number of Warren High School students may have seen sheriff’s deputies in a new light.
And that is what community policing is all about.