Two major drug busts on South Bend's west side

SOUTH BEND, Ind. --- Two large drug busts happening right in South Bend's West Side. The seizure and search which took place last Thursday on Summit Drive and Grant Street resulted in the arrest of one man on drug related offenses.

One of the homes is where officers found Cartell Winston last Thursday while executing a search warrant on a home he was renting.

Neighbors shared it’s not a shock and with drug trafficking possibly happening just down the street, they were to afraid to be seen on camera.

“La renta no les importan a ellos. Pero los vecinos estamos sufriendo," said a neighbor. Sharing the owners don’t care about the tenants they rent to and it’s caused the residents to suffer.

The rented home on Grant Street is where federal and local agents say they found weed, a money counter, and $10,000 cash.

Families who live nearby already had suspicions.

“Porque tengo mi hamac aquí en la esquina y dice que hay un monton de gente allí que llegen y salen. Y locos venden marijuana," said the neighbor. Saying one of his neighbors told him they saw several people coming and going from the house buying and selling drugs.

Former unit supervisor for the Elkhart Countywide Drug Task Force and current criminal investigations consultant Brett Coppins tells me busts like these can typically be connected to some of the bigger crimes we’re seeing nationwide.

“This arrest was a great start, but welcome to the world of a street officer in any major city today. In order for our crime numbers to go down this type of arrest needs to happen weekly," said Coppins.

Just a few minutes away on Summit Drive investigators say they found a pound and a half of crystal meth, more than a pound and a half of fentanyl, nearly a dozen guns 5-thousand dollars, and two 14-year old children unaccounted for.

Officers didn’t make any arrests at the Summit Drive home.

I asked the neighbor if he was afraid to continue living near an alleged drug dealer.

He said, "No, no me asusto porque no, como no me menten con nadien no tengo miedo. Vivió ya casi cerca de los ochenta años no me debo nada a nadie ni me meto con nadien vivo tranquilo.” Saying he doesn’t involve himself in his neighbors business and he’s lived close to eighty years that way so that he can continue to live a calm life.

The search and seizures were part of an ongoing and continuing investigation.