AHOSKIE – Hertford County Sheriff Juan Vaughan and Ahoskie Police Chief Troy Fitzhugh have a message for drug dealers in the county.

&uot;It’s going to be the county jail or the county line,&uot; Vaughan said following charges being levied against seven individuals Thursday night. &uot;It seems as if drug dealers are getting bolder by the day and were just not going to tolerate it.&uot;

Thursday saw the Hertford County Sheriff’s Office and Ahoskie Police Department team up with the North Carolina National Guard Drug Task Force, the Murfreesboro Police Department and the North Carolina Alcohol Law Enforcement to curb what was termed the &uot;open air drug market in Ahoskie.&uot;

During the operation, coordinated by City-County Drug Unit Lt. Raymond Eure, seven people were arrested with varying charges.

Troy Lee Parker Jr., 37, of 111 Hall Siding Road in Ahoskie was charged with possession with intent to sell and deliver crack cocaine and carrying a concealed pistol. Officers reportedly retrieved a .25 caliber Raven Pistol from the subject.

Parker was placed under an $8,000 secured bond and made his first appearance Friday.

Oris Rocco Hall, 49, was charged with multiple counts as well. Hall, of 753 Mt. Moriah Road, Ahoskie, faces charges of possession with intent to sell and deliver crack cocaine, consuming while driving and transporting an open container after consuming.

Hall was placed under a $5,000 secured bond and had his first appearance Friday.

Other charged included:

* Ernest Leon Sessoms, 25, of 225 Thompson Road, Colerain was charged with simple possession of cocaine. He was placed under a $2,500 secured bond and had his first appearance Friday;

* Tausha Domic Bass, 30, of 640 Meadow Road, Colerain, was charged with possession of less than one ounce of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia;

* Benjamin Lewis James, 49, of 118 Sears Road, Ahoskie was charged with possession of an open container in the passenger area of a motor vehicle;

* Jason Earl Eure, 27, of 412 Murfee Road, Winton was charged with Driving While Impaired and consuming while driving;

* Detrick White, 29, of 507 Main Street, Winton, was charged with resist, obstruct and delay, injury to personal property and Driving While License Revoked. He was placed under a $2,500 secured bond and had his first appearance Friday.

&uot;This is another of our efforts to slow down the sale of drugs in Hertford County,&uot; Vaughan said. &uot;I want to thank all of the officers and agencies involved.

&uot;I also want to thank the citizens involved for their input,&uot; he added. &uot;We will continue to do operations like this to make every effort to slow it down.&uot;

Fitzhugh said he agreed whole-heartedly with the sheriff’s assessment.

&uot;I want to echo the sheriff,&uot; he said. &uot;Without the citizen’s complaints and the help of all the agencies involved, we wouldn’t be able to do what we do now.

&uot;We will continue to act on complaints and continue to make arrests of those who continue to want to sell drugs in Hertford County,&uot; Fitzhugh closed.