PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Officials are warning the public of a synthetic opioid that is 100 times stronger than fentanyl.
Drug Enforcement Administration agents from the Seattle Field Division recently seized counterfeit M30 pills containing carfentanil in Western Washington.
“Carfentanil is like fentanyl on steroids,” said Seattle DEA Special Agent in Charge David Reames in a press release. “The cartels traffic this incredibly dangerous substance in order to profit from our misery.”
After a months-long investigation involving the DEA, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Federal Way Police and Centralia Police, agents seized 50,208 pills from a suspect at a gas station in Centralia, Washington.
The driver, who is from Pacific, Washington, was caught after a K9 detected narcotics inside the vehicle. The pills were sent to a DEA lab in California for testing. Lab results showed the pills contained carfentanil along with acetaminophen, which is used as filler.
Carfentanil is 1,000 times more potent than morphine and 100 times more potent than fentanyl, according to the DEA. Deaths involving the drug have increased sharply in recent years.
Between January and June 2023, there were 29 deaths from carfentanil. During the same period in 2024, there were 238 deaths from the drug, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Amanda Rhoades
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