The Danville Police Department is reporting that drug overdoses are down drastically this year. For 2025 year-to-date compared to 2024, the city of Danville has seen a 37% reduction in opioid related overdoses and a 30% reduction in fatal overdose cases. These reductions come after a 63% reduction in overdose cases and 47% reduction in fatal overdoses reported from 2024 compared to 2023.
The Danville Police Department says they treat individuals fighting substance abuse as victims and provide services instead of incarceration whenever possible, the agency maintains an aggressive and focused model to investigate distributors of deadly drugs including fentanyl, heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, other adulterants that have led to overdose deaths in the community. The efforts have led to identifying and bringing criminal charges against individuals supplying dangerous drugs to citizens of our community and more are anticipated.
The Danville Police Department Vice-Narcotics Unit led separate overdose investigations which resulted in the recent arrests of 25-year-old Brandon Christopher BURKE of Danville and 25-year-old Tiyon Rayquan SMITH of Danville. Each are charged with:
- VA Code 18.2-248 – Possessing Fentanyl with the Intent to Distribute, and
- VA Code 18.2-46.6 – Possessing Fentanyl as a Weapon of Terrorism.
Danville Police are reminding the community that fentanyl is being mixed with other substances including xylazine and distributed, unknowingly, to the user in some cases. More than 90% of fatal overdoses in Danville involved fentanyl or a toxic mix with other drugs since 2022.