DEA warns of counterfeit pills containing deadly fentanyl, meth

Officials share emojis people use to buy drugs

DETROIT – The DEA is warning of a deadly trend involving the type of illicit drugs coming into Metro Detroit.

They are finding pills that look like normal prescription medicines but they contain meth and fentanyl.

The DEA says the counterfeit pills are flooding Metro Detroit and people are running into them when they buy pills from street-level dealers.

The people buying the drugs believe they are buying high powered opiods to get high, when those pills actually containing deadly fentanyl and people are dying.

Acting Special Agent in Charge Kent Kleinschmidt said people are overdosing and dying. That’s when the DEA gets involved.

People are using emojis to communicate with their drug dealers and set up buys. Emoji conversations are something parents need to learn to decode.

Read: Complete Local 4 Defenders coverage

Common emoji codes for fake prescription drugs, according to the DEA. (WDIV)

About the Authors

Local 4 Defender Shawn Ley is an Emmy award-winning journalist who has been with Local 4 News for more than a decade.

Kayla is a Web Producer for ClickOnDetroit. Before she joined the team in 2018 she worked at WILX in Lansing as a digital producer.

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