Fake but deadly: Counterfeit oxy found in Monmouth County

FREEHOLD — Two potentially fatal synthetic drugs have turned up in Monmouth County.

The blue tablets look similar to oxycodone tablets and are imprinted with its identifying code "A/215," according to Monmouth County, Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni. However, the tablets really contain carfentanil and cyclopropyl fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opiate that is 10,000 times more potent than morphine and 100 times more potent than fentanyl.

Gramiccioni said the tablets showed up during investigations in Holmdel and Long Branch. Carfentanil is only approved for use by veterinarians. A single granule could be deadly to humans.

"If you are buying these pills on the street, you are playing a deadly version of Russian roulette," Gramiccioni said.

Cyclopropyl Fentanyl is not for human consumption and was connected to a series of fatal overdoses in Georgia over the summer. Georgia Bureau of Investigation spokesman Nelly Miles told the Albany (Georgia) Herald the drug can only be found on the street.

The drug was also found in the system of Chase Bolling, the son of Fox News Host Eric Bolling, who was found dead on Sept. 8 in Boulder, Colorado.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com.

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