‘Force multiplier’: SBI announces Northeastern Drug Task Force
- Corinne Saunders
- 13 minutes ago
- 4 min read
Heads of the participating agencies in the newly formed Northeastern Drug Task Force smile the afternoon of Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026, at the Currituck Public Safety Building in Barco. (Photo by Corinne Saunders)
By Corinne Saunders
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BARCO — “I’m a little giddy,” North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) Director Roger “Chip” Hawley told members of the media gathered Tuesday afternoon at a press conference announcing the newly formed task force to combat drug trafficking and drug use in the area.
Hawley, speaking at the Currituck Public Safety Building in Barco, called the formation of the eight-agency Northeastern Drug Task Force a “historic event for northeastern North Carolina.”
Along with the SBI, the task force includes the District Attorney’s Office for the First Prosecutorial District, Currituck County Sheriff’s Office, Dare County Sheriff’s Office, Gates County Sheriff’s Office, Pasquotank County Sheriff’s Office, Kill Devil Hills Police Department and Nags Head Police Department.
“By combining investigative resources, intelligence-sharing and prosecutorial coordination, the Northeastern Drug Task Force will focus on identifying, disrupting and dismantling drug trafficking networks operating in the northeastern corridor of North Carolina,” a Monday SBI press release about the task force said. “The task force will also work to address the broader impacts of drug use on local communities, including associated crime and public safety concerns.”
While there is currently no dedicated funding attached to the task force, Hawley said, “We are applying for federal and state grants that will assist us in moving forward.”
The SBI contributes its technology to the task force, and three dedicated SBI officers will participate, he said.
“We have partnered with these agencies to be a force multiplier,” Hawley said.
Each participating task force agency has a dedicated officer or task force focused on drugs—but the task force will work in all jurisdictions across the northeast, including those without such dedicated resources, he noted.
District Attorney Jeff Cruden gave the example of Camden County—which does not have a dedicated drug officer or task force—but said it will not be forgotten, as the task force covers all seven counties in the First Prosecutorial District.
“We’re going after all the counties in our district,” Cruden said.
He stressed that his office differentiates between people who use drugs and people who sell them.
For drug users, he said there are now “diversion programs” such as recovery court, which “help people get on the right track so they don’t have a record for the rest of their life.”
The focus of the task force is on finding the drug traffickers who are selling drugs to folks in the community, ultimately “killing our children,” Cruden said.
Because drugs do not stop at jurisdictional lines, Cruden said: “We have to be able to be able to go past those borders.”
Dare County Sheriff Doug Doughtie said that his county’s drug task force has already been working collaboratively with town law enforcement agencies within Dare County.
“We’re very fortunate,” Doughtie said. “We’ve got a great working relationship with everybody…and the district attorney that prosecutes, so we’re in good hands.”
Dana Harris, Kill Devil Hills’ assistant police chief, and Perry Hale, Nags Head police chief, each told Outer Banks Insider after the press conference that each of their police departments has one dedicated drug or narcotics officer.
The Dare County Sheriff’s Office has four deputies dedicated to the county’s drug task force, which totals six officers, as it includes the Kill Devil Hills and Nags Head officers, Chief Deputy Jeff Deringer explained.
Pasquotank County Sheriff Tommy Wooten noted during the press conference that his office has jurisdiction within Elizabeth City and often works with city police officers.
“I know everybody saw the City of Elizabeth City was not on this [task force list],” Wooten said. “We are very involved in working together.”
Wooten said the regional task force has been in the works for a year and a half.
Wooten issued a warning to drug dealers and drug traffickers: “We’re coming for you.”
Hawley said this task force is the second such group that has formed recently. He stressed that it is needed, as 2025 saw fentanyl seizures up 99% over the prior year.
“Across the board, everything is up,” he said of drug crimes.
“There are citizens across the state that are suffering from drug use, and the only way I can address that is with the task force,” Hawley said. “I need local partnerships to build this force against drug trafficking.”
Hawley stressed that the mission of the SBI is “service,” and that includes providing assistance to “all 100 counties, all 100 sheriffs, all 543 [police] chiefs, all 38 DAs—I want to make sure that we have a foundation they can stand on.”
According to SBI Public Information Director Chad Flowers, the previously formed drug task force operates in the Neuse River area. It includes Carteret, Craven and Pamlico counties.
“The drug trade is alive and well in North Carolina, and the goal here is to cut that drug trade,” Flowers told Outer Banks Insider about the impetus for forming task forces.
“You could probably throw a stick and hit somebody who’s been affected by a fentanyl drug overdose or death—not to mention the other drugs, you know, cocaine, crystal meth,” he said.
The new task force allows work across jurisdictional lines since the SBI has statewide jurisdiction, Flowers said.
“Because the SBI and all the agencies are working together, they can cross county lines, they can cross city lines, and still work on drug activity,” he said.
To view the press conference recording, click here.
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