Alleged leader of large-scale Meck County drug-trafficking operation charged: DOJ

CHARLOTTE (QUEEN CITY NEWS) – The alleged leader of a large-scale fentanyl manufacturing and distribution operation appeared in court on Tuesday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina announced.

31-year-old Charlotte resident Rahkim Franklin was charged with fentanyl possession with the intent to distribute.

Court records state that from 2022 through 2024, Franklin led a fentanyl pill manufacturing and distribution operation in Mecklenburg County. A house in Charlotte was utilized for the pill press part.

A warrant was executed at the home on March 7th, 2024, and 500 grams of vacuum-sealed fentanyl, about 1,000 fentanyl tablets, 30 pounds of fentanyl mixed with a suspect binder, and an electronic pill press were seized. The average 2023 price for a fentanyl tablet was between $25 and $50, according to data from Zinnia Health .

A further investigation determined that Franklin and his co-conspirators were manufacturing the pills to appear to be oxycodone, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

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