Fake Oxy-Codone sold in El Paso contains lethal doses of Fentanyl

El Paso, TX – It’s a little blue pill that can kill you. 

Street dealers are selling them as oxycodone – a prescription pain reliever – but they’re actually counterfeit. 

They’re called fake-oxys – but the people buying them don’t know they’re fake.

The pills look exactly like Oxy-Codone – but actually, contain lethal doses of fentanyl.

Special Agent Kyle Williamson – with the DEA, El Paso sector – told ABC 7’s Christina Aguayo that every time a person takes one of these pills, they’re gambling with their life. He said, “You can have five pills in your hand you may take one pill and it does absolutely nothing, the next one you take may kill you.”

Williamson said that Oxys made by a pharmaceutical manufacturer are carefully measured out and consistent, which is not the case for pills made in an illegal lab.  Williamson said it’s nearly impossible to tell the difference between the two, saying, “An Expert pharmacist, for example, could tell by looking at the pills but it’s very hard to distinguish for the average normal person on the street.”

He said the reason for using Fentanyl in the pills is all about profit. He said “It’s a money thing, they’re able to bring in a chemical such as fentanyl, a synthetic opioid and they’re able to make more with less money. “

According to Special Agent Williamson,  fake oxys are manufactured in Mexico then brought across the southern border to be sold on the streets. 

“The dynamic in El Paso is changing. A lot of drugs do pass through El Paso because it is a transit city however the proximity to the border where these pills are coming in and because they are in a pill form,” Williamson said, “We’re seeing a lot of it staying in the area.”

In 2016 The DEA El Paso sector didn’t seize any Fentanyl at all, last year alone they seized enough Fentanyl to kill close to ten million people, Williamson said, “this year we’ve already seized enough fentanyl that basically takes out the entire population of El Paso.”

Williamson said he has listened to parents who never thought their child would pop a pill at a party, that could kill them.  He said, “The kids were high school athletes honor students normal average everyday people.its an equal opportunity destroyer.”

Agent Williamson said that nearly 200 people die every day in the u.s. from opioid overdose.