Got Drugs You Want to Dispose Of? The Police Can Help

The message on the poster says it all: Got drugs? But the meaning is probably not what you think.

After participating in a couple of successful drug collection events, the will become one of only eight communities in the state that offers a secure 24-hour drop box for unused or expired medication starting in mid-February.

Simsbury Police Chief Peter N. Ingvertsen made a presentation to the board of selectmen about the program at the selectmen’s meeting Monday night.

“We continually get phone calls,” said Ingvertsen, from people asking about where to safely dispose of medications.

He said if medications are flushed that is bad for the environment as it enters the water stream and leaving them around the house could prove a temptation for thieves.

The police department took the initiative to apply for the program through the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). The roughly $1,000 cost is funded through the DEA’s Drug Asset Forfeiture Fund and there is no cost to the town taxpayer now or in the future.

Anyone will be able to come into the police station, located in the town hall complex, and drop off unused or expired medications at any time. The locked box will be placed near the elevator in the lobby area. The box will be bolted to the floor and will have 24-hour camera surveillance.

“It entails a great deal of security,” said Ingvertsen.

Once full, the box is emptied by two department members — for verification purposes — and is burned. The box closes up similar to a mailbox in that you cannot retrieve anything once it has been placed in the box.

Ingvertsen said the roughly 13 x 6-inch box is on its way and should be in operation by the middle of February.