Disruption to the fentanyl supply chain is working as purity levels take drastic drop, DEA says
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- New national numbers from the Drug Enforcement Agency show a drastic drop in the number of fentanyl pills they're seizing that are potentially deadly.
"The purity levels have gone down, which is a good thing. That's showing progress," said Bob Beris, Special Agent in Charge at DEA's San Francisco Field Division, serving much of Northern California.
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DEA laboratory testing found 29% of fentanyl pills tested in the last fiscal year contained a potentially lethal dose, which is a significant drop from 76% of pills tested just two years prior.
"Enforcement is absolutely one of those factors that we can attribute to it," said Beris. "The Drug Enforcement Administration and the United States government have been putting a lot of pressure on the global fentanyl supply chain, on the precursor chemical companies, we're putting pressure on the cartels, and we're putting pressure on the illicit finance networks."
The U.S. has bolstered border security with the use of drug detection technology, as well put sanctions on transcontinental criminal organizations, and met with China in an effort to slow the flow of precursors used to make fentanyl into the U.S.
Still, the DEA says while the supply of fentanyl may be less potent, it doesn't mean it's less dangerous.
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"There's no quality control when these guys get this raw fentanyl chemical. They're just mixing it together, throwing it in the blender with their binders or their cutting agents, scooping it up, and selling it," said Beris. "So you may get something that has all binder, and the person right next to you that comes in line after you is going buy something that's almost all fentanyl."
"That's what street drug use is, it's straight Russian roulette because you never know," said Del Seymour, the founder of Code Tenderloin, a nonprofit working with people experiencing homelessness and addiction in San Francisco.
"Talking to the people outside my door and the people that I deal with day to day - the fact is, the effect of these crackdowns is people aren't being as careful as they were before because there was a little more fluid, a little more leniency," said Seymour. "Now, because of the crackdowns, people are getting more desperate. They will buy from anybody."
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And making matters even more unpredictable, is carfentinal, a synthetic opioid 100 times more potent than fentanyl.
"Because it's so potent and we're talking, you know, near microscopic amounts of carfentanil that can be potentially lethal. It doesn't take much, and they're mixing it with everything," said Beris, noting the DEA has seized it in Oakland, Milpitas, San Jose, and Fairfield.
They've yet to see it in San Francisco, but they also warn that doesn't mean it's not on the streets.
