Man charged after 1,902 fentanyl pills seized at London’s airport: police

A 41-year-old London, Ont., man is facing a drug trafficking charge after police allege he was caught at London’s airport earlier this year with 1,902 fentanyl pills packed inside two stainless steel containers.

The seizure, which occurred March 1, is being described by police as their largest single seizure of fentanyl pills to date, well surpassing a bust in March 2017 involving 26 pills.

Officers were contacted after airport security reported discovering the pills inside two containers in luggage that had been presented by a passenger, police said.

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Police said Friday that the pills were originally suspected to be oxycodone/acetaminophen, known by the brand name Percocet, but were later confirmed by Health Canada to contain fentanyl, the synthetic opioid estimated to be 50 to 100 times stronger than morphine.

Because of that, police have issued an advisory to the public about the pills, which had been marked “TEC,” saying similar products may be in circulation in the community.

Fentanyl is blamed for a large part of the waves of deaths from opioids that have swept through Canada and the United States in the past several years.

According to police, the accused, a 41-year-old London man, faces a charge of possession for the purpose of trafficking in a Schedule I substance.

He is set to appear in court Sept. 4.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police or Crime Stoppers.

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