AGENCIES JOIN TO FIGHT HEROIN THREAT

State, city and federal authorities have teamed to find the source of
a strain that has killed about 70 people in the region since April. B

City, state and federal law enforcement and public health officials
yesterday announced a joint regional effort to track the deaths
attributed to painkiller-laced heroin and identify the suppliers of the drug.

Heroin mixed with fentanyl has caused about 70 deaths in the
Philadelphia region and more than 200 overdoses nationwide since it
was first spotted in April, U.S. Attorney Patrick J. Meehan said.

"The problem with fentanyl is that it's deadly," Meehan said. "The
push of a syringe is like pulling the trigger."

To determine the full scope of the problem in the region, officials
representing law enforcement in Philadelphia and Camden County; the
federal Drug Enforcement Administration and the FBI; and
Philadelphia's behavioral health department said they would share
information and coordinate their investigations.

Deaths have been reported over the last month in the cities - and
suburbs - of Philadelphia, Camden, Chicago and Detroit. More than 40
people in Camden County were hospitalized over the weekend and three
people died after using heroin.

Philadelphia District Attorney Lynne M. Abraham expressed concern
that disseminating information about fentanyl-laced heroin would
increase awareness among addicts and result in more deaths. However,
she said that getting the word out was essential from a public-health
perspective.

"In the back of our minds we worry... this may be something that,
perverse as it may sound, will encourage drug abusers who are used to
the high of heroin to want to seek even a bigger bang for their
dollar," she said.

Some dealers are already asking buyers whether they want their heroin
"with or without" fentanyl, she said.

Meehan said the key to the coordination efforts was using a central
"fusion center" for investigative agencies, hospitals, public health
agencies, drug treatment centers, and medical examiners to submit
their findings. The federal High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area
program will serve as that point for collecting and distributing
information, Meehan said.

The goal is to find out where addicts are getting the tainted heroin,
then disrupt and dismantle the supply chain, Abraham said.

Meehan and Abraham also made clear that third-degree murder charges
could be brought in Pennsylvania against drug dealers whose product kills.

"Fentanyl-laced heroin is a sure and certain way to death," Abraham said.