ALLISTON, Ont. -- Nineteen central Ontario residents face scores of drug charges in a six-month police investigation that began with two deaths linked to the abuse of a powerful painkiller.
Provincial police say fentanyl -- which is 100 times more potent than morphine -- is commonly used in a slow-release prescription patch but is being illegally scraped off and smoked, with potentially lethal results.
The Project Daisy investigation was launched in May into the two deaths and other illegal activity related to the acquisition and distribution of the drug in several Simcoe County communities.
Police say 19 arrest warrants were executed on Monday and Tuesday, with 208 fentanyl patches, 100 Oxycontin pills, marijuana, bear spray, $1,400 in cash and a GMC pickup truck seized.
The accused face a total of 172 charges, including trafficking in a controlled substance, possession of a controlled substance and possession for the purpose of trafficking.
Six of the accused appeared in a Barrie court Wednesday, while the remainder are due in court on Dec. 19.
"The inappropriate use, abuse, and diversion of prescription narcotics are public health and safety issues right across Canada, and our area is no different," Insp. Dirk Cockburn said in a release.
Police said two other deaths in the area are also suspected of being fentanyl-related.
The province's coroner found there were 253 deaths of acute drug toxicity linked to fentanyl between 2009 and 2011 -- second only to deaths from oxycodone, police said. Another 36 deaths linked to fentanyl have occurred this year.
