Grand Blanc woman arrested in large-scale opioid operation

GRAND BLANC, Mich. (WNEM) - Michigan State Police executed search warrants on Wednesday as part of a large-scale opioid operation in multiple cities, including Grand Blanc.

Nurse practitioners were issuing illegal prescriptions for tens of thousands of controlled pills, specifically hydrocodone and oxycodone, with most of these being illegally diverted for street sales, MSP said.

Five suspects have been detained including:

• A 67-year-old man from West Bloomfield
• A 41-year-old woman from Grand Blanc
• A 47-year-old woman from Van Buren Township
• A 30-year-old man from Detroit
• A 53-years-old woman from Taylor

The suspects include two nurse practitioners, a receptionist, a staff member, and the ringleader of the operation, MSP Lt. Michael Shaw said, adding the ringleader has been arrested and served time before.

None of the suspects have been charged yet, police said.

Search warrants were executed in Grand Blanc, Detroit, West Bloomfield, Van Buren Township, and Taylor as part of Operation Candyman, according to state police.

At the time of the first search warrant, which was executed about 10 a.m. on May 11, there were 10 to 15 patients inside the illegal clinic located at 8251 Eight Mile Road in Detroit, Shaw said.

During the search warrant at the clinic, three firearms were seized.

MSP said illegal clinics are a leading contributor to overdose deaths and people becoming addicted to opiates.

State police were assisted by the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, and Blue Cross Blue Shield.

This was a two to three-month-long operation.

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