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LAYTON — A widely abused pain med is being whipped-up by drug dealers, police say.
It looks like the real thing but police say it's not. The biggest problem is that the drugs contain a lethal amount of fentanyl.
Layton Police have already seen one overdose-death linked to this drug. But the problem isn't just in Layton. Police are seeing these fake pills all over Utah. The Drug Enforcement Agency even issued a warning.
“I wouldn’t say it’s a problem, it’s an epidemic,” said Layton Police Sgt. Clint Bobrowski.
It's no secret prescription drug abuse runs rampant in our communities. But now, BoBrowski says drug dealers are creating their own prescriptions.
“They’re using pill presses illegally purchased that they are doing in their apartments and they are pressing these pills to make it look like roxicodone,” Bobrowski said.
Often times, the drug is sold on the streets in it's pure form from a pill bottle you get from your local pharmacy.
But these fake pain pills being sold on the streets are laced with a deadly drug.
“Fentanyl is incredibly addictive. It’s about 50 times stronger than heroin,” Bobrowski said.
Sgt. Bobrowski said the street corner counterfeit pills are being laced with lethal doses of fentanyl. Police are seeing an uptick in overdose deaths they believe are directly linked to these phony pills.
Most drug abusers won’t even be able to tell a difference, BoBrowski said.
Of course, police say never buy any drugs off the streets. But if you come across this one, stay away.
The Davis Metro Narcotics Task Force and the DEA are actively pursuing leads to find out who is behind distributing them in Utah.
