A spokesman for the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office Drug Unit said that while prescription pain pill abuse occurs in every age bracket, the office is beginning to see more young people using illegal meds.

According to a press release from the agency, Elizabeth Ann Sparrow, 22, of 1984 Woodstock Road, Belhaven, was arrested after drug unit officers stopped Sparrow’s vehicle on Aug. 3. Oxycodone, pill bottles, a snorting straw and small plastic bags were found in the vehicle, said the spokesman.

Sparrow was charged with trafficking in opiates by possession, trafficking in opiates by transportation and possession of drug paraphernalia and held under a $3,000 secured bond at the Beaufort County Detention Center.

“The one thing I am noticing is that the younger crowd is using opiates more and more. It seems to be popular with the younger crowd — using harder drugs,” the spokesman said.

While older people often have legal prescriptions for the drugs, the younger users rarely do, he added.