Kingston police say one person died and three others suffered non-fatal overdoses after using what cops believe is cocaine laced with the deadly opioid fentanyl.
According to police, the fatal incident occurred on Thursday, Nov. 9 when emergency personnel were called to a residence on Apple Street. When police arrived, they found four adults unresponsive. A child who was present in the house made the 911 call and was unharmed.
All four victims were transported to HealthAlliance of the Hudson Valley’s Broadway campus, police said. One 41-year-old male died of acute opiate intoxication; the other victims received treatment and survived, police said. Police recovered drugs from the scene that were packaged like cocaine, in a plastic baggie, rather than the glassine envelopes typically associated with heroin and fentanyl. Field tests on the drugs detected the presence of both cocaine and fentanyl.
“At this point it’s obvious that they were all partying together,” said KPD Detective Sgt. Brian Robertson. “And they all went down.”
Robertson said last week’s incident was the first confirmed case of cocaine mixed with fentanyl appearing in the city. Robertson said police had interviewed the survivors and were investigating the source of the drugs. Robertson said the case was especially concerning because it was likely that the victims were unaware of the presence of the opioid in the cocaine.
“With heroin, people kind of know what they’re getting into, they have [overdose-reversing drug] Narcan around and they have a tolerance,” said Robertson. “But if you don’t normally use opiates and you don’t have that tolerance, you’re definitely going to die.”