NEW ORLEANS — It looks like it could be nothing other than a couple of chunks of concrete. But looks can be deceiving.
It’s what police call “gray death,” a potent combination of several opioids.
“This is a deadly mixture between heroin and fentanyl,” said NOPD Superintendent Shaun Ferguson.
It could also contain carfentanil — which is sometimes used to tranquilize elephants.
Authorities say the drug can be 10,000 times stronger than morphine. And there’s concern that simply touching it can be toxic.
“To my understanding, it is very deadly to the touch,” Ferguson said.
Now, after it was found in St. Mary Parish near Lafayette, local law enforcement is on alert.
“We have informed our officers to be aware of this mixture,” Ferguson said.
The NOPD isn’t alone in its concern. The JPSO and St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office say they’ve stopped field testing most unknown powdered substances. That work’s now done in a lab.
And in St. Charles Parish, the sheriff’s office is training its deputies so they know what to be on the lookout for.
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