United States Drug Enforcement Administration

A review of cocaine exhibits acquired by law enforcement authorities during operations across Florida and analyzed by forensic laboratories during the period from 2016 to 2017 revealed the widespread adulteration of cocaine with fentanyl and fentanyl-related substances. Fentanyl, a Schedule II opioid analgesic approximately 50 times more potent than heroin and 100 times more potent than morphine, carries a high risk of overdose and can be lethal at the 2-milligram range. Forensic chemists discovered fentanyl and fentanyl-related substances including acetyl fentanyl, carfentanil, Furanylfentanyl, and p-fluoroisobutyryl fentanyl in over 180 cocaine exhibits. Carfentanil, a synthetic opioid that is approximately 10,000 times more potent than morphine, was the most prevalent of the fentanyl-related substances found in Florida’s cocaine seizures.