Arizona police seizes 1.7 million fentanyl tablets, fake pills as overdose deaths rise 27.6%

Overdose deaths in the U.S. rose 27.6% over a 12-month period between 2020 and 2021 to a new record high due to the COVID-19 pandemic and a growing supply of dangerous drugs, like fentanyl and counterfeit opioid pills.

There were 98,331 drug overdose deaths recorded nationwide from April to April, according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The preceding year recorded 77,011.

Experts pointed to the economic hardships created by the COVID pandemic and lockdowns, which pushed people to “start to use more or in riskier ways,” according to Haley Coles, executive director at Sonoran Prevention Works.

Coles also noted that quarantine policies meant fewer people were around to help. “Now that we’ve encouraged people to isolate – when you’re by yourself and you’re using, there’s nobody there to help you if you overdose,” she said.

Overdose deaths from prescription opioids fell, but the number from fentanyl skyrocketed due to a growing supply made with supplies from China and smuggled in through Mexico.

The federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) worked with Arizona police and seized a record $9 million worth of fentanyl on Dec. 14. The more than 300 pounds of drugs were equivalent to 1.7 million pills.

“This is not a recreational drug. This is death,” said Scottsdale Police Chief Jeff Walther at a Dec. 16 press conference about the operation.

DEA lab testing results show that four out of every 10 pills with fentanyl contain a potentially lethal dose.

Ten kilograms of powdered fentanyl and one pound of methamphetamine were also seized, which authorities said could have been used to make up to 4 million more fentanyl pills.

“We’re talking about 6 million fentanyl pills [total]. That is enough to kill more than half the population of the state of Arizona,” said Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich during the press conference.

A DEA representative said dealers had begun using social media to sell their drugs, “posting emojis and coded lingo that has specific meanings. We urge you to talk to your children about these specific pills.”

Fentanyl is also finding its way into fake prescription opioid pills, also known as “blues” and “dirty oxys,” which are desired by long-term prescription opioid users cut off from their supply by anti-overdose legislation or the pandemic.