PIKEVILLE – Heroin is slowly becoming a trendy drug among Pike County dealers.

“It’s cheaper and it’s becoming easier to get than prescription drugs such as OxyContin,” said Keith Napier, Operation UNITE’s Big Sandy Task Force manager. “We’ve been noticing this trend for several months.”

On Friday, UNITE detectives were joined by other law enforcement agencies to serve drug trafficking warrants on 27 individuals – about a quarter of which involved heroin sales.

Most of the other cases during the 10-month investigation involved Oxycodone, cocaine or marijuana.

Assisting with the roundup were officers from the Pikeville, Coal Run and Elkhorn City police departments, Kentucky State Police, and Pike County Sheriff’s Office.

During the roundup, police seized small quantities of Suboxone and mariuana from several residences.

Easy access to interstate highways seems to play a factor in where heroin – which is brought in from out-of-state – is turning up on the streets.

Heroin has been an epidemic problem in Northern Kentucky – and most recently Fayette County – but is slowly making its way into rural portions of Kentucky.

Along with the increase in heroin sales comes an increase in heroin-related overdose deaths.

“That’s something we desperately want to prevent in this region,” Napier said.

Police are continuing to seek out those who could not be located on Friday.

Those arrested as of 1:30 p.m. and lodged in the Pike County Detention Center were:

• Kristen Campbell, 22, Stone Coal Road, Pikeville, five counts first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance.

• Paula Childress, 32, Kentucky Avenue, Pikeville, second-degree trafficking in a controlled substance.

• Sandy Ford, 29, Kentucky Avenue, Pikeville, second-degree trafficking in a controlled substance.

• Anthony Hall, 29, Ratliffs Creek Road, Pikeville, first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance and third-degree trafficking in a controlled substance.

• Richard Hodges, 40, Pikeville, first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance and third-degree trafficking in a controlled substance.

• Julie Rawson, 43, Stone Coal Road, Pikeville, first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance, third-degree trafficking in a controlled substance, and persistent felony offender.

• Arlis Silcox, 26, Ashcamp Road, Elkhorn City, second-degree trafficking in a controlled substance.

• Kendall Webb, 52, Brush Road, Varney, first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance.