Police arrest Houma man suspected of dealing drugs, including heroin, meth and fentanyl

Multiple agencies worked together to arrest a major drug dealer last week in an effort to combat overdoses, authorities said.

Kendell Cortez Thibodeaux Jr., 28, of Houma, faces multiple drug and weapons charges as a result of the investigation, including possession with intent to distribute heroin, fentanyl and methamphetamine.

Thibodeaux was taken into custody Feb. 10 following a joint investigation conducted by the Sheriff’s Office, Houma Police Department and State Police.

Terrebonne Parish Sheriff Tim Soignet said the probe was launched after authorities investigated a large number of drug overdoses at the end of last year.

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“When we hear about a drug overdose we just don’t stop there,” Soignet said Wednesday. “We try to gather information that sometimes leads us to sources, and in this case we were able to use our intel division to further our investigation. We take a deeper look at it and are able to connect some dots and make some arrests.”

Investigators were led to a home in the 1000 block of Aycock Street, where Thibodeaux was developed as a suspect, authorities said. Police said he had been selling drugs in a home where young children were present.

After detectives obtained a warrant, narcotics agents, Houma Police and State Police went to the home Feb. 10 and conducted a search, which led to the recovery of a loaded handgun, cash, drugs and drug paraphernalia.

Among items seized were a 9mm handgun, $13,000 in cash, bags containing heroin, fentanyl and hydrocodone pills, a digital scale and a blender with trace amounts of drugs, police said.

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Thibodeaux was booked into the Terrebonne jail, where he is being held on $3 million bail. His next court appearance is scheduled for March 17.

Soignet said his deputies have seized record amounts of heroin off the streets in recent months.

According to the Terrebonne Coroner’s Office, the parish had 40 confirmed overdoses in 2021, with nine cases still pending. Thirty-four of those deaths involved fentanyl, which is a deadly synthetic opioid.

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Terrebonne had 36 drug overdoses in 2019 and 46 in 2020, the Coroner’s Office said.

Overdose deaths in Lafourche increased from 22 in 2020 to 33 in 2021, and several cases are still pending. Lafourche reported 17 drug-related deaths in 2019.

Soignet said combating drug overdoses has been a constant battle.

“My guys do a good job, and I’m proud of the work they’re doing,” Soignet said. “We don’t really leave any stones unturned when it comes to these kinds of issues because it’s bad out there. We’re trying to take this stuff off the street any way we can.”

— Staff Writer Dan Copp can be reached at 448-7639 or at dan.copp@houmatoday.com. Follow him on Twitter @DanVCopp.

This article originally appeared on The Courier: Police arrest Houma man suspected of dealing drugs, including fentanyl