TENTATIVE LINK BETWEEN DRUG WARNING, ODS

A public alert about dangerous and even fatal street drugs available in
Sault Ste. Marie has been tentatively linked to what appear to be heroin
and intravenous morphine overdoses dating back up to four months. The local
coroner's office took the unusual step Wednesday of issuing a warning of
the potential risk involved with the use of current street drugs that ``may
be more dangerous than their users believe.''

Sault coroner Dr. Douglas Brooks said the warning, which was later narrowed
down to heroin and IV morphine, is a result of preliminary laboratory
reports from a number of recent deaths.

Brooks would not say how many coroner's investigations currently under way
are believed linked to drugs but said that there have been ``more
fatalities of late'' of such a nature in the city.

"Basically it's from some of the detective work that's been done and the
history of some of the people involved in the investigations. As well, we
have some initial laboratory reports that point in that direction," Brooks
said Thursday.

The first of the "many ongoing investigations" into these deaths dates back
"three or four months," he said, adding that the length of time between the
first death and the public warning is partly a result of the length of time
to receive the results of toxicology tests, which determine the presence of
drugs in the system.

Two to three months is the minimum for "quantitative results," he said.

It is too early to determine whether Martin Arcangeletti, the Sault Ste.
Marie man whose body was found in his truck on Saturday, died as a result
of bad heroin or morphine, he said.

"There's a possibility but it's not for certain. I don't have any
toxicology results back on him at all," he said.

Shortly before 5 p.m. on Saturday, the Sault Ste. Marie Police Service
received a call about a 1999 black Ford truck in the parking lot adjacent
to the Sports Center Bar & Grill on Wellington Street West.

Arcangeletti's body was discovered in the passenger seat.

An autopsy Sunday failed to determine how the 37-year-old man died.

City police Insp. Terry Noble said that the police department cannot
release any more information because the matter is an ongoing coroner's
investigation.

"We spoke about this (Thursday) and we can't release any information at
this time," he said.

Noble said that the coroner has put out a press release warning the public
to beware of the drugs "and we can't release anything else."

He would not say whether police are investigating the matter or where it's
believed the drugs originated.

Sgt. Lee Campbell said the initial warning by Brooks was followed up with a
more detailed press release, identifying heroin and intravenous morphine as
the fatal street drug in question.

"It's a coroner's investigation and he dictates what information goes out,"
Campbell said.