The Daily Caller reports that Chinese companies are selling a dangerous opioid called Carfentanil in the U.S., and this drug trade is booming despite the efforts of authorities to control distribution.
Carfentanil is a synthetic opiate that is used to tranquilize large animals. It has also been the subject of chemical weapons research for some time.
Carfentanil is capable of taking down – even killing – an elephant. It is reportedly 5,000 times more powerful than heroin and 10,000 stronger than morphine, making it one of the deadliest drugs on the market. In fact, the Russians converted Carfentanil into an aerosol spray and used it against the Chechen rebels during a hostage crisis in 2002. A total of 125 people died in the incident.
China is the main source for fentanyl-related compounds in North America. Carfentanil is brought into the U.S. by Chinese distributors and purchased by drug dealers who cut it with heroin and other narcotics to sell it on the street.
Carfentanil can be easily purchased from Chinese companies online. The product is banned in the U.S., and it is extremely difficult to track. U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner R. Gil Kerlikowske told a congressional committee:
Standard field kits do not accurately detect fentanyl
Carfentanil, therefore, can be directly exported in standard cargo and postal shipments.
Ignoring the risks, Carfentanil is now the rage among drug users. It is said to be behind hundreds of overdoses and deaths in Canada and the U.S. In a period of only 21 days in July, more than 230 carfentanil-related overdoses occurred in Ohio. The Drug Enforcement Administration found that the craze of Carfentanil definitely led to a serious spike in overdoses. At one point, 60 overdoses occurred across two states in a short span of 48 hours.
The DEA has pushed China to blacklist Carfentanil, but China has yet to do so. The DEA, however, is hopeful, stating that the China is cooperating and working with the agency to solve the present drug problem.
