Free Republic

A fairly new drug is finding its way into the U.S., and law enforcement personnel say it’s 20 times more potent than fentanyl. It’s called ISO, which is short for isotonitazene. The Drug Enforcement Administration says drug dealers are mixing it with other illegal drugs, making them more potent. “It is here. It’s present, and how potent this is — it’s not worth the one time they might use it. It’s not worth that extra high they might get because that could be their only time or their last time,” said Britney Morris, public information officer for the Pasco County...

Forensic analysts have identified a new and highly potent family of synthetic opioids in the District’s illicit drug supply, a worrisome discovery in a city already struggling with a wave of fatal overdoses that shows no signs of abating. The opioids, found on used syringes examined by scientists at the D.C. Department of Forensic Sciences in September and October, are called protonitazene and isotonitazene, respectively. Experts estimate that each is at least several times more powerful than fentanyl, the synthetic opioid that has displaced heroin in many parts of the United States and is now responsible for the majority of...