EDMONTON — RCMP and health officials are raising the alarm about a painkilling drug linked to more than 100 deaths last year in Alberta.
Illegally made fentanyl can be many times more powerful than morphine and can be mixed into other street drugs and sold to unsuspecting buyers.
Police say they have been seizing record amounts of fentanyl in communities across the province, including more than 88,000 tablets since last April.
RCMP Deputy Commissioner Marianne Ryan says organized crime is a driving force behind the making and marketing of the drug known as "greenies."
The Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse said last month that it has been receiving reports across the country of fatal and non-fatal overdoses linked to non-pharmaceutical fentanyl.
Earlier this month the British Columbia Coroners Service said fentanyl was detected in about a quarter of 330 overdose deaths last year, compared with five per cent in 2012.
