Abbotsford, B.C., police warns of heroin overdoses because of high drug potency

ABBOTSFORD, B.C. – Police in Abbotsford, B.C., are warning of an alarming increase in the number heroin overdoses, just one day after a coroner confirmed “Glee” actor Cory Monteith died of a toxic mix of heroin and alcohol.

Const. Ian MacDonald says police call-outs since May for such medical emergencies have increased by 39 per cent, with eight overdoses, including one death.

The department says its front-line officers are hearing from people who have raised concerns about the potency of the heroin being bought, sold and used on the street.

MacDonald couldn’t make any link between the local heroin and the drugs used by Monteith, but said it would be naive to think that potent heroin would stay with the confines of the Fraser Valley.

He says drug dealers and suppliers follow the money.

One possibility for the increased potency could be explained by the presence of the opioid drug fentanyl cut into heroin, which MacDonald says was part of a warning from the Provincial Health Officer in May.