Warning around fake oxycodene pills issued after death of man in Napier

A public safety alert around fake oxycodone pills has been issued following the death of a man in Napier last week.

The man died and another man became seriously unwell in the incident at a Napier address last Friday. The coroner is investigating the death.

High Alert Drug Information and Alerts Aotearoa New Zealand issued an alert on Wednesday that fake oxycodone tablets may be linked to the death and serious hospitalisations in New Zealand.

The tablets have been found to contain metonitazene, a highly potent synthetic opioid.

Metonitazene has a potency equivalent to fentanyl. Metonitazene acts quickly to produce strong sedative/depressant effects. This substance has been linked to drug related deaths internationally.

They have been offered for sale online and are possibly available throughout New Zealand.

The tablets are being sold online as ‘40mg oxycodone pills’ however are described as ‘metonitazene based oxys’.

“These tablets are not legitimate 40mg oxycodone tablets and the quantity of metonitazene present is not known. There is a concern this information may not be communicated to people not purchasing these tablets from the original online source,” the alert said.

A sample of this substance was submitted to the Institute of Environmental Science and Research (ESR) for analysis, which determined the sample contained metonitazene. No oxycodone was detected in the tablet.

Anyone who has heard of any reports of the drug, are advised to let the agency know. All submissions are anonymous and can be made here.

Metonitazene and other nitazene compounds can come in a variety of forms including powders, gel caps and liquids. Fentanyl test strips cannot be used to detect metonitazene or other nitazenes.

A lethal dose of metonitazene is equivalent in size to a few grains of salt, meaning there is no way to accurately dose this substance. Metonitazene has been implicated in several deaths internationally, with pharmacological data suggesting it exhibits potency similar to fentanyl.

Illicitly pressed opioid pills often have little to no quality control meaning these tablets have unpredictable dosages, increasing the risk of unintentional overdosing. Many of these pills have been shown to have varying doses even within the same batch.