One Dead and Five Sickened in Mississippi by Fake Oxycodone Made with Fentanyl and Methamphetamine

Officials with the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics took to local news media to warn the public about a deadly new version of counterfeit oxycodone being sold in and around Hattiesburg, the Hattiesburg American reports.

According to the Hattiesburg American, Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics officials reported that there have been five overdoses and one death since the beginning of March in the area.

Gulfport Police Chief Leonard Papania told the Sun Herald his officers encountered fake oxycodone made with fentanyl in their community last May.

In the Clarion Ledger, Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics director John Dowdy warned Mississippi residents, "Regardless if it is methamphetamine, marijuana or prescription pills, the chances of their getting a dosage unit contaminated with fentanyl is pretty high right now."

To learn more about Mississippi’s problems with counterfeit medication, download our 2018 information sheet, The Deadly Counterfeit Drug Trade Thrives in Mississippi.