THUNDER BAY - A Thunder Bay police officer is being praised for acting quickly and saving the life of a man who was believed to have been suffering from an apparent overdose over the weekend, but local police are also reminding residents of the deadly fentanyl-based street drug commonly sold in the city.
Insp. Ryan Gibson with the Thunder Bay Police Service told reporters on Monday, June 15, the drug, dubbed Purple Down, has been in the community for at least two years. Officers have come in contact with the drug through arrests and through overdoses, Gibson said.
“It’s synthetic heroin,” he said. “The people who traffic these narcotics — the goal is to make as much money as possible.”
On Sunday, June 14, a police officer responded to reports of a person down near Connolly and McTavish streets. When the officer responded to the individual, he noticed needles near the man. The officer administered Naloxone and the male began to recover.
In a news release issued Monday, police explained how fentanyl-based drugs continue to pose a serious threat to people struggling with addictions in the community.
Gibson explained drug dealers are able to sell drugs such as Purple Down at a low price knowing users will return for more.
“Having a few extra people die is no problem [for drug dealers] because they know they are going to hook the user, they are going to make a significant amount of money and their goal is to always increase that niche and they can get that with this drug,” he said.
Gibson warned anyone purchasing and ingesting these drugs could result in deadly consequences and the people selling these narcotics have no sympathy for those they are selling to.
“Anyone who deals fentanyl —it’s a loaded gun. They gave zero-concern for the users,” he said. “They are the worst kind of individuals.”
In April, police alerted the public of a spike in overdoses possibly linked to fentanyl-based drugs known as Dizzy or Down.
“We deal with overdoses every night,” Gibson said.
Gibson also explained how the city leads the province when it comes to overdoses. A previous police media release stated Thunder Bay had the highest per-capita opioid overdose death rate throughout Ontario.
These overdose calls can put a strain on all first responders, Gibson said.
“It’s terrible actually having to deal with the aftermath of this stuff,” he said, adding police will continue to be proactive in arresting the individuals “involved in trafficking these deadly narcotics.”
“There is always going to be somebody who is going to make a profit off of other people’s misery.”
