BY TIMOTHY LA ROCHE
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WESTMINSTER, Vt. — A Claremont, New Hampshire, man who was arrested in Chester this week faces drug charges after police say they found fentanyl and other regulated drugs in his vehicle during a traffic stop.
Myron Scott, 37, was charged with driving under the influence, possession of fentanyl, and possession of other regulated drugs on Tuesday after Vermont State Police arrested him on Route 103 in Chester. He was released on $1,000 bail shortly after the incident.
Around 6 p.m., State Troopers pulled over Scott’s white Chevrolet van for alleged erratic driving. During the stop, police gave Scott field sobriety tests and a drug recognition expert later determined that he was under the influence of drugs at the time.
A search of Scott’s person and vehicle turned up a few plastic bags that police say contained fentanyl, suboxone and clonazepam pills. All three substances have medical uses but are illegal to possess without a valid prescription under the Vermont criminal code.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that binds to receptors in the brain to produce pain-killing and euphoric effects up to 100 times stronger than morphine. Fentanyl is lethal at doses as small as 2 milligrams — the equivalent of a few grains of salt.
In 2017, the New Hampshire State Medical Examiner’s Office recorded 166 overdose deaths from fentanyl alone and another 81 overdose deaths from a combination of drugs including fentanyl. Over the same period in Vermont, fentanyl was identified in 67 overdose deaths — 54 percent of all overdose deaths in the state.
Scott was ordered to appear in Windsor County Superior Court in White River Junction on May 22.
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