A vial of the animal sedative xylazine, which is commonly known as “tranq.” The image is overlayed with a spoon and needle, indicating drug use.
Three people from Connecticut are facing several fentanyl and cocaine trafficking charges after allegedly distributing cocaine and fentanyl laced with a deadly animal tranquilizer.
Authorities said Wednesday that a federal grand jury in New Haven indicted a 37-year-old Branford man, 27-year-old Branford woman and 35-year-old New Haven man on five charges related to the possession and distribution of narcotics.
According to the Connecticut U.S. Attorney, these defendants and others sold narcotics to investigators more than 20 times between February and July 2024.
One of the narcotics federal officials accused the three defendants of trafficking was xylazine-laced fentanyl.
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Xylazine is a potent nonopioid sedative used as a veterinary tranquilizer and not approved for human use. The drug — which is sometimes added to illicitly manufactured fentanyl to increase its effects and lower its price — has been increasingly detected in overdose deaths involving synthetic opioids.
And its prevalence has skyrocketed in recent years, particularly in Connecticut.
Case in point, according to a report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the number of fentanyl overdose deaths involving xylazine increased nationally by 279% between January 2019 and June 2022.
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But where xylazine — which unlike fentanyl does not respond to overdose rescue medications like naloxone — was detected in just under 11% of fentanyl overdose deaths nationwide in 2022, it was detected in a quarter of fentanyl overdose deaths in Connecticut.
The defendants appeared in New Haven federal court on Wednesday after being arrested and indicted earlier this month. All three entered not guilty pleas.
While conducting subsequent searches of the Branford defendants’ shared residence and “other locations,” investigators said they discovered nearly $100,000 in cash, drug ledgers, scales and other drug processing materials.
