A deadly counterfeit drug may already be circulating throughout Wood Buffalo, according to police. Corporal George Cameron says if a killer knock off of OxyContins was found in the Edmonton area, it’s likely made itself here.
“I know we’re a bit of a drive away, but in perspective to the size of the province, we’re fairly close as well,” says Cpl. Cameron. “So it wouldn’t surprise me if there were deaths as a result of these counterfeit drugs.”
Wood Buffalo RCMP sent out a warning last month following a rash of sudden deaths by overdose. Investigators are still waiting for toxicology tests to determine the exact cause of death in those cases. The RCMP’s drug unit hasn’t found any of the knock-offs in Wood Buffalo, but Cameron says it may turn up in the hands of drug users.
“We know that there’s people out there that are taking drugs illegally, but I think the bigger message that we want to get out is the awareness of this counterfeit drug and the dangers of it. Not that any drug is any less dangerous,” he says.
St. Albert RCMP handled a recent bust that had police seizing what they thought was OxyContins pills. After the drugs were analyzed in a lab, investigators were told the substance was actually Fentanyl. The painkiller is 80 times more toxic than morphine. Earlier this month, counterfeit OxyContins were connected to the deaths of two men in their early 20s in Saskatoon. Symptoms of an overdose include slow or weak breathing, dizziness, tiredness, extreme sleepiness, hallucinations, seizures, difficulty walking or talking and death.
