Westbrook police officer Kipp Bleicken had to be hospitalized earlier this week after he was exposed to the powerful drug fentanyl during a traffic stop according to the Press Herald.

When the officer pulled over Maria V. Bowie for a headlight being out, she haned him her license and showed him new replacement bulbs saying she knew the light was out and that's why she was being stopped.

But Bleicken recognized her as a :"drug associate" and called for a police dog to assist.

When the officer noticed an orange pill bottle partially hidden under her leg he asked her to get out of the vehicle, she resisted. She was told the car was going to be searched and told the officer that she had hypodermic needles in her purse. When she went to grab the purse officer Bleicken told her not to touch anything.

Animals Are Treated At The Battersea Veterinary Hospital
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According to the Press Herald, “I reached into the car through the passenger’s window and grabbed the purse,” Bleicken wrote. “She latched onto the purse and began screaming … while continuing to pull the purse away from me. I pulled the purse from her hand at which time I observed a cloud of white powder burst into the air.”

A second officer on the scene, Benjamin Hall,  began to show signs of exposure to the drug and was taken to Maine Medical Center where he was later released.

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