Deadly opioid seized in Toronto for first time
Carfentanil, a powerful form of fentanyl, has been seized on Wednesday afternoon in Toronto, Toronto police confirmed.
A substance claimed to be heroin was seized toward the end of October and was recently tested by the Drug Analysis Service Laboratories Regulatory Operations Branch of Health Canada.
It was found to be a mixture of carfentanil, cocaine and caffeine, police said.
Carfentanil is a more powerful type of fentanyl that is used to sedate large animals.
About 20 micrograms of the drug equivalent to a grain of salt, can be fatal, said police
“Anytime there is a narcotic that is this toxic it is obviously a public safety concern,” Steve Watts, acting inspector with Toronto police, told CP24 on Wednesday. “If you are a longtime and seasoned user of opioid drugs and you are ingesting a substance of this toxicity there could obviously be some severe and fatal results even with a small dosage.”
The Canada Border Services Agency had thrice confiscated carfentanil in Western Canada this year, Watts told CP24 adding that the closest seizure to Toronto had been in Waterloo until recently.
Watts was greatly concerned about public safety after the perilous drug mixed with other substances was found in Toronto, he said
“That is the issue. It is being cut with other controlled substances and it has no taste or smell,” he said. “So if you cut it with caffeine or cocaine, even a seasoned user would not be able to determine that it had been laced with carfentanil.”
Last week a total of 165 overdose deaths in the province in 2015 involved fentanyl, Ontario’s chief coroner said that.
Carfentanil is about 100 times more dangerous than fentanyl.
According to CityNews Carfentanil cannot be detected by sight, smell or taste, and has been linked to overdose deaths across Canada.
About a dozen Chinese businesses had been identified by The Associated Press who would export the exceedingly powerful drug to Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Belgium and Australia for as little as US $2,750 a kilogram.
(Reported by Asha Bajaj)
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