SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The United States Drug Enforcement Administration recently released a public safety alert saying the fentanyl crisis is more deadly now than ever before.
Officials say of the fentanyl-laced fake prescription pills analyzed in 2022, six out of 10 now contain a possibly lethal dose of fentanyl. That's up from four out of 10 in 2021.
The data comes out as federal prosecutors announced one of their largest drug busts to date after raiding the basement of a multi-family home in Massachusetts.
“There were more doses seized in this one house in Lynn than there are people in Massachusetts and the street value is close to $8 million,” said Joshua Levy, acting United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts.
There were about 10 pounds of heart-shaped pills, resembling Valentine's Day candy, laced with fentanyl.
One local lawmaker is blaming social media for the rise.
"Social media is the new drug dealer. Law enforcement agencies are not equipped for how fentanyl is being sold to our young people,” said Representative Josh Harder.
More than 60 families joining in on a lawsuit against Snapchat, claiming features like automatically deleting messages and the “my eyes only” privacy option make illegal activities harder to track.
“If you're the Stockton Police Department, if you're the Tracy Police Department and you see bad behavior on one of these social media sites targeting kids, then unfortunately those social media sites don't always answer your phone call,” said Harder. “That's why we need national authorities like the DEA to step up and make sure that we can hold folks accountable for this."
Snapchat says it uses "cutting edge technology” to try and keep users safe and is working to raise awareness about the dangers of fentanyl and stop dealers from abusing the platform.
