A2 The BulleTin • Sunday, FeBruary 13, 2022
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BEND
Husband and wife arrested for
smuggling fentanyl in peanut butter
fice to use “less-lethal explosive
devices to temporarily disori-
ent the Martins during their
arrest,” Vander Kamp said in
the release.
No one was injured during
the arrest, but the Martins were
taken to St. Charles Bend to be
evaluated for unrelated med-
ical conditions, the statement
said. After leaving the hospital,
both were transported to the
Deschutes County jail.
At the time of his arrest,
Luke Martin was holding a
grocery bag with an unusual
amount of commercial-sized
peanut butter containers the
couple allegedly used to con-
ceal large amounts of fentanyl
powder and fraudulent Oxyco-
done pills wrapped in plastic,
Vander Kamp said. The peanut
butter was likely used to mask
the odors to prevent dogs or
detectives from finding the
drugs, he said.
Detectives also found sto-
len mail from around the Bend
area. Investigators believe it
was part of a fake check opera-
tion they allege was being run
out of the couple’s home.
“Investigators allege the hus-
band and wife are printing fake
checks using real bank account
information taken from un-
suspecting people, businesses,
and banks with information
taken from the stolen mail,”
Vander Kamp said. “The coun-
terfeit checks are often written
in their own or conspirator’s
names, then cashed at the ac-
count holder’s bank. As a re-
sult, the victim account hold-
ers often don’t find the loss for
many days and it’s often not
recoverable.”
Both of the Martins are
lodged at the county jail on
charges of unlawful possession,
manufacture, and attempted
The officer who pulled over Topinka soon
confirmed he was employed as a trooper for
the Oregon State Police. Topinka was issued a
citation in lieu of being taken to jail for driving
under the influence of intoxicants, which is con-
sistent with current COVID-19 protocol at the
Deschutes County Adult jail, the release added.
Topinka was off duty and driving a pickup
truck when he was stopped.
February is
Cancer
Prevention
Month
BY JOE SIESS
The Bulletin
A Deschutes County sher-
iff’s SWAT team used stun
grenades to disorient and help
arrest a Bend couple Friday
morning for charges related to
alleged fentanyl smuggling and
passing counterfeit checks.
A search of the couple’s
home turned up large amounts
of commercial-sized pea-
nut butter containers used
to smuggle large quantities
of drugs, and several stolen
checks from residents and
businesses in the Bend area,
said Sgt. Kent Vander Kamp of
the Central Oregon Drug En-
forcement Team.
Luke Anthony Martin, 38,
and his wife, Ryeann Mar-
tin, 27, were arrested after
detectives searched the cou-
ple’s home in the 61000 block
of Ferguson Court about
10:30 a.m., Vander Kamp said
in a press release.
Multiple law enforcement
agencies were involved in the
long-term investigation of the
Martins. The Martins are part
of an ongoing drug case spread
out throughout the state,
Vander Kamp said.
“During a concurrent inves-
tigation, drug agents identified
the husband and wife as fen-
tanyl traffickers in the central
Oregon area,” Vander Kamp
said. “The initial investigation
alleges Mr. and Mrs. Martin
have been importing large
quantities of fentanyl pills and
powder from the Portland area
into central Oregon where they
distribute it.”
Central Oregon drug enforcement Team/Submitted photo
During a drug bust Friday in Bend, detectives located a significant,
commercial quantity of fentanyl powder and fraudulent OxyCodone
tablets made of fentanyl wrapped in plastic and concealed within pea-
nut butter containers. This was likely done to mask odors and prevent
drug detection dogs or detectives from finding the fentanyl.
Luke Martin’s violent crimi-
nal history, which indicated he
may have weapons, prompted
drug enforcement detectives
and the SWAT team from the
Deschutes County Sheriff’s Of-
LOCAL BRIEFING
Bend Police arrest OSP trooper for DUII
An Oregon State Police trooper was stopped
Thursday night in Bend by police and cited for
driving under the influence of intoxicants.
After driving through a blinking red light
without stopping, Lewis Topinka, 40, of Bend
was pulled over downtown by a Bend Police of-
ficer around 11:08 p.m., a press release from the
police department said Friday evening.
— Bulletin staff report
distribution of fentanyl and
methamphetamine, and
first-degree forgery and aggra-
vated identity theft.
Luke Martin is also facing
a felon in possession of a re-
stricted weapon charge.
Vander Kamp said the cou-
ple’s bail has been enhanced
because of the large quantity of
illegal drugs they were traffick-
ing, and that the investigation
is ongoing with additional ar-
rests expected.
Vander Kamp said in the
last two years, the region has
seen a significant increase in
fentanyl trafficking. Most of
the drugs are manufactured
illegally in Asia and then traf-
ficked into the United States by
drug cartels in Mexico, he said.
The cartels tend to mix the raw
fentanyl with adulterants like
acetaminophen — the primary
ingredient in Tylenol — but
due to the clandestine process
of making the pills, the dosing
is inconsistent, leading to over-
doses and deaths.
In a clinical setting, a 200
pound adult would only need
two micrograms of fentanyl,
or about two grains of salt.
However, it is not uncom-
mon for the illegal pills out on
the streets to contain deadly
amounts of the drug, Vander
Kamp said.
“Our main focus is to seek
out the large scale drug op-
erations,” Vander Kamp said.
“We are not seeking out small
dealers. We are seeking out the
source and following it to Mex-
ico, following it to Asia.”
e
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