Greater Hardin Co. Narcotics Task Force named 2021 Task Force of the Year

The Greater Hardin County Narcotics Task Force (GHCNTF), which operates in Grayson County and includes a Leitchfield Police Department detective, has been selected as the 2021 Task Force of Year.

The Appalachia High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (AHIDTA) selected the organization for the award.

In a joint effort, including personnel representing Kentucky State Police, Hardin County Sheriff’s Office, Leitchfield Police Department, Nelson County Sheriff’s Office, Radcliff Police Department, Hart County Sheriff’s Office, LaRue County Sheriff’s Office, and Shepherdsville Police Department, the Greater Hardin County Drug Task Force is led by the Elizabethtown Police Department.

AHIDTA Director Vic Brown said the GHCNTF seized nearly a half-million dollars in cash and assets, more than 10,000 fentanyl pills, large quantities of methamphetamine and cocaine along with other illicit drugs in 2021.

“A long-standing Appalachia HIDTA Task Force since 2012, the Greater Hardin County Drug Task Force is making a difference in their communities,” Brown said. “They further hold accountable those who would damage the peace and dignity of our Kentucky communities. Undoubtedly, there are many family members alive today due to the hard work of the Greater Hardin County Drug Task Force.”

The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area program is administered by the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), a component of the President’s Executive Office and created by the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988.

Law enforcement organizations within HIDTA assess drug trafficking problems and design specific initiatives to reduce or eliminate the production, manufacture, transportation, distribution, and chronic use of illegal drugs, as well as money laundering.

The task force operates in a six county area, including Hardin, Grayson, Hart, LaRue, Nelson, and Bullitt counties.

A few of the arrests and seizures the Greater Hardin County Narcotics Task Force executed during 2021 in Grayson County, along with a bust in Hudson that netted a suspected drug dealer from Grayson County (click on the description to read the full story):

In January, the task force arrested two Leitchfield residents on methamphetamine trafficking charges, along with felony wanton endangerment due to the presence of a small child in the home.

In February, the task force seized nearly 100 fentanly pills and methamphetamine in Hudson. A Leitchfield man along with an Evansville man were arrested.

In July, the task force and Grayson County Sheriff’s Office teamed up for a six week investigation that resulted in the arrest of a Leitchfield man on drug trafficking charges. Police seized heroin, methamphetamine and hydrocodone. A female fugitive on the run for 18 months was also arrested as a result of the investigation.

In August, the task force arrested a Big Clifty man on methamphetamine trafficking and theft charges.

In September, after an investigation, the task force jailed a Leitchfield man after finding a “large amount of methamphetamine … near a sleeping baby.”

In November, a suspected major narcotics dealer in Leitchfield was arrested by the task force, with police seizing several grams of methamphetamine and other narcotics as well as numerous “high-dollar” stolen items.

(Photo: Drugs, guns and cash seized by the Greater Hardin County Narcotics Task Force)

By Ken Howlett, News Director

Contact Ken at ken@k105.com