By MACKENZEE SIMMS | Staff Writer

CALERA – Officers with the Calera Police Department recovered 5 pounds of methamphetamine in the past week according to an announcement made by the CPD on Tuesday, June 18.

According to Calera Police Chief David Hyche, the drug seizure occurred after officers responded to a tip. No arrests have been made as of yet, but the investigation is still ongoing.

Hyche shared his opinion that the confiscated drugs are representative of an underlying problem in Shelby County.

“There is a seemingly endless flow of drugs coming across our border and taking this off the streets isn’t going to stop that,” Hyche said. “I do however believe that taking this poison off the street will save individual lives. Five pounds of meth can destroy a lot of families.”

According to the Alabama Department of Public Health’s 2024 Alabama Drug Threat Assessment, law enforcement and treatment respondents ranked methamphetamine as the second greatest drug threat in Alabama, behind fentanyl and other opioids.

“Methamphetamine continues to be reported as the greatest contributor to violent crime, and property crime, according to the law enforcement survey answers,” read the report. “According to EPIC, there were 290.04 kilograms of methamphetamine seized through investigations in Alabama in 2022.”

More information will be released as it becomes available.