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August 14, 2008

Alleged drug-dealing senior citizens arrested

By Patrick McCreless

PATRICKM@CULLMANTIMES.COM

Cullman narcotics investigators arrested two local senior citizens last week for allegedly drug dealing with their own prescription pain medication.

Sharon Lawrence, 66 and Glenda Murcks, 65, both of Nesmith Park Apartments, were each charged with two counts of unlawful distribution of a controlled substance. Both turned themselves over to authorities.

According to Cullman police reports, investigators with the Cullman County Narcotics Enforcement Team (CNET) began investigating the two women about two months ago.

“It actually began after we received complaints from the apartment manager and neighbors,” said Narcotics Investigator David Nassetta. “They started noticing the type of people who didn’t live there visiting there frequently.”

Nassetta said during the investigation, several controlled buys were made from Lawrence and Murcks.

“As far as we could tell it was prescription medication they legitimately obtained from their doctors,” Nassetta said.

Among the drugs allegedly purchased from the two women were morphine, oxycodone and clonazetam.

“Oxycodone is really serious,” Nassetta said. “It’s meant for very serious pain treatment. It can cause a lot of serious health problems. And morphine is a highly addictive pill.”

Nassetta said he suspects the two women were working together to sell the drugs.

“I’m sure they both knew what the other one was doing,” he said. “They lived right next to each other. They had some of the same people visit them.”

Though he did not know how many pills Murcks and Lawrence might have sold over the past two months, Nassetta said typical pain medication prescriptions can be for between 30 and 90 pills. Nassetta added that such pain pills will typically sell for between $2 and $15 a piece.

Nassetta said CNET runs across similar prescription drug cases fairly regularly.

“Prescription drugs are a big problem countywide,” Nassetta said. “It’s definitely up there with the meth problem. It’s very common to find prescription drugs being used and sold along with meth.”

Lawrence and Murcks were incarcerated at the Cullman County Detention Center, but were later released on $35,000 bonds.

Unlawful distribution of a controlled substance is a Class B felony, punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

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