RICHLAND COUNTY, S.C. — A newly identified synthetic opioid known as Cychlorphine may be emerging in South Carolina, raising concerns among local officials and medical experts about its potency and potential impact.
Richland County Coroner Naida Rutherford said the drug was discovered during an investigation into a woman’s death that initially did not show signs of drug use in standard toxicology testing.
“When we saw Cychlorphine and they called us, we were just in shock. Like, this doesn’t happen in our state. We haven’t seen this. We see it in Tennessee. We see it in Oklahoma. We don’t see it in South Carolina. And as far as I know right now, we’re the only agency that has had a positive result like this,” Rutherford said…