Drug 10,000 Times Stronger Than Fentanyl Resurfaces in Metro Detroit—Linked to 11 Deaths, Disguised as other Pills

Federal agents are warning the public about a dangerous resurgence of carfentanil — a powerful synthetic opioid originally designed to sedate elephants — that’s now being found in pills and powders across southeast Michigan.

Carfentanil is not meant for human use, yet drug dealers are mixing it into counterfeit pills and street drugs, often unknowingly. “People think they’re buying something like Percocet or Xanax, but they’re actually getting fake pills laced with fentanyl or carfentanil,” Brian McNeal, Public Information Officer for the DEA Detroit Field Division.

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