Ex-DEA official warns parents that dealers are peddling fentanyl drugs to kids on social media!
- Parents have been urged to educate themselves about fentanyl ahead of Halloween after 15,000 pills were seized disguised in candy packaging
- The Drug Enforcement Administration has been cracking down on fentanyl – which they link to 66 percent of deaths from overdoses and drug poisoning
- Investigations into fentanyl have also been linked to social media platforms including Snapchat, Facebook Messenger, Instagram, and TikTok
- Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 50 times more potent than heroin, with rainbow fentanyl first reported to the DEA in February 2022
A drug that’s contributed to the deaths of tens of thousands of Americans last year has been found hidden in candy packaging – and could be peddled to young children via social media, experts say.
The DEA said drug traffickers have expanded their inventory to sell fentanyl – a synthetic opioid 50 times more potent than heroin – in a variety of bright colors, shapes and sizes.
A recent seizure in Connecticut found 15,000 fentanyl pills stashed in Skittles and Nerds packaging, and with Halloween just weeks away, the DEA is urging parents to be vigilant.
The agency have sent a stern warning to parents to educate themselves as children prepare for the spooky season, with a former specialist warning that ‘this is not a drug issue, it’s a mass poisoning.’
During the period of May 23 to September 8 this year, 10.2 million fentanyl pills and about 980 pounds of fentanyl powder were seized by the the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) as part of the One Pill Can Kill initiative.
Of the 390 cases investigated during this period, 51 cases have been linked to overdose poisonings and 35 cases link directly to one or both of the primary Mexican cartels responsible for the majority of fentanyl in the United States – the Sinaloa Cartel and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).
By Aneeta Bhole