OVERDOSES REVIVE CONCERNS OF TAINTED DRUGS

Wilmington police announced three more heroin overdoses on Wednesday,
bringing the total number of overdose cases in New Castle County
since June 29 to at least 15.

Wilmington vice squad detectives are investigating the rash of heroin
overdoses in the city and warning people to avoid the potentially deadly drugs.

A Drug Enforcement Administration task force was formed months ago to
investigate distribution of a deadly batch of heroin mixed with the
painkiller fentanyl that has killed users in the Delaware Valley and
nationwide. In that task force, cases in Delaware are investigated by
the DEA's Philadelphia office.

In the three newest cases, small plastic bags -- stamped "Omen,"
"Diesel" and "Hit & Run" -- were found near the victims, Master Sgt.
James Gestwicki of Wilmington police said. All three victims were
treated at area hospitals and released.

Federal agents were contacted about the rash of overdoses, city
communications director John Rago said.

At least eight people in Delaware died between mid-April and mid-May
from fentanyl-tainted heroin -- three in New Castle County on April
25 alone. In the same period, nearly 30 died in Philadelphia and New
Jersey. The lethal mix has killed at least 100 people from
Philadelphia to Chicago in the past few months.