Oklahoma Bureau Of Narcotics Sees Major Rise In Fentanyl-Related Overdoses

Governor Kevin Stitt is visiting the U.S.-Mexico Border this week and said more people coming into the U.S. illegally is causing problems in Oklahoma. 

The Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics said one of those problems is an increase in the deadly painkiller, Fentanyl, coming into our state from Mexico. 

Mark Woodward with Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics said Fentanyl-related overdoses increased by 157 percent in 2020. 

He said this is an epidemic across the United States, including here in Oklahoma. 

"It is just a very powerful drug, though, and number two it is so cheap to manufacture," Woodward said. 

Woodward said Fentanyl is being mass produced in China in raw form, and then is usually trafficked into Mexico or sold on the dark web where it's then purchased by drug traffickers already in the U.S. or in Mexico. 

He said Fentanyl is being sold across the state disguised as OxyContin, heroin, cocaine and even meth. 

"Some of it is being shipped through the mail, some of it is being shipped through cargo containers, but I would say the majority of it is being driven across the border by the drug trafficking organizations," Woodward said. 

Woodward said U.S. Border Patrol can't get every load that comes across the border, so the burden falls on U.S. law enforcement. He said they work closely with federal agents and other states. 

"We have stopped many loads here in Oklahoma that may have ultimately been destined for New York or Florida or North Carolina thanks to information we got from our partners at Border Patrol or one of these other states," he said. 

Woodward said with I-35 and I-44 crossing Oklahoma, it's easy for the drugs to get to the state and be distributed to other parts of the country. 

 "Our highway system and our close proximity to the border really make Oklahoma prime real estate for these drug traffickers," he said. 

Woodward warns people not to buy pills off the street, because people don't know if it’s laced with Fentanyl until they take it. He said many people are dying after just one pill.