Rock Hill barber shop owner sold fentanyl at Saluda Street business, police say

The owner of a Rock Hill barber shop was arrested on drug charges Wednesday after a raid by York County agents at his business.

Jimmy Bernard Gaston, 52, is charged with three counts of possession of drugs with intent to distribute and three counts of dealing the drugs near a park or school, according to police and jail records.

Gaston, owner of Gaston’s Barber Shop on Saluda Street, was selling fentanyl, a powerful opioid that police and health officials say has led to multiple overdose deaths, police said.

Agents made a buy of fentanyl from Gaston at the shop, said Marvin Brown, commander of the York County Multijurisdictional Drug Enforcement Unit.

Officers then got a search warrant for the business. During a raid Wednesday, they found more than 20 more fentanyl pills, Brown said.

“The sale of the drugs was at the shop from the suspect Mr. Gaston, and we found more fentanyl at the shop while executing the search warrant,” Brown said.

The shop, just south of downtown Rock Hill and Fountain Park, is near the Rock Hill school district early childhood development center, at the intersection of Main and Orange streets.

Gaston is being held without bond at the York County jail.

This story was originally published September 20, 2018 at 10:35 AM with the headline "Rock Hill barber shop owner sold fentanyl at Saluda Street business, police say."