WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) - Police say Delaware is facing an epidemic of heroin use because it's cheap, easy to find and pure enough to snort, while the cost of prescription drugs has tripled due to close monitoring.
The News Journal reports heroin seizures by New Castle County police spiked 860 percent compared with this time last year.
Police Chief Elmer Setting says heroin is easily available as prices have returned to 1980s levels. Instead of people chasing Oxycodone or other expensive drugs, he says drug users can obtain heroin on the cheap. A baggie of heroin with 0.02 grams sells for about $5.
State police report seizures of heroin totaled about 471 grams last year from Georgetown to Wilmington. This year, that figure has more than tripled to nearly 1,600 grams seized.
