1. Pol Quintana Mireia ventura
The hidden web and the fentanyl problem: detection of ocfentanil as an adulterant in heroin
Pol Quintana
Mireia ventura

2. Credit Mireia Ventura Marc Grifell Alvaro Palma Liliana Galindo
Iván Fornís
Cristina Gil
Xoán Carbón
Fernando Caudevilla
Magí Farré
Marta Torrens

3. Background: the internet and drug supply
Internet + non controlled substances = “Legal High/Research Chemical” phenomenon
Internet + controlled substances = “Silk road” phenomenon

4. Background: the fentanyls
Ocfentanil
Patent
1959
1986
Medical use
General anaesthesia, deep sedation, treatment of moderate to intense pain
Clinical research stopped 1991
Never licenced as a drug.
Active dose
50 µg (0,05mg)
30 µg (0,03mg)
Legal status
Scheduled
Not scheduled

5. Background: the fentanyls problem
Fentanyl use is a major concern in several contries such as USA, Canada, Australia, Estonia
Fentanyl derivatives have been detected…
In the surface web (butyrfentanil & 4-F-butyrfentanil, 2015)
In the hidden web (acetylfentanyl & butyrfentanyl, 2016)
Fentanyls have been used to adulterate heroin and other opiates for at least three decades, causing outbreaks of overdoses and deaths.

6. Why this talk?
Case-study featuring an old problem (adulteration of heroin with fentanyl derivatives) in a new context (the hidden web) with a novel substance (ocfentanil)

7. “The effect is opiate of course, but not exactly like heroin”
“For really addicted people there is a difference: the effect is shorter so they are sooner in withdrawal. One person said what alerted him was that when he took this heroin, he was in withdrawal every morning when he woke up.”

8. Methods

9. Methods

10. Date
Sold as
Appearance
Result
Bought in/ sent from
Additional features
Sample #1
June 2015
Heroin
White powder
Ocfentanil, caffeine, paracetamol
Hidden Web, 4/3/2015
Madrid
Vendor: “FrenchConnection”
Male, 36 years old
Sample #2
October 2015
Not available
Ocfentanil, caffeine (27%),
paracetamol (33%), heroin (16%)
Hidden Web, 5/9/2015
France
Vendor: “Europdrugs”
Sample #3
Ocfentanil, caffeine (26%),
paracetamol (29%), heroin (3%)
Sample #4
March 2016
Hidden Web, 10/3/2016
Vendor: Unknown
Male, 45 years old

11. Other reports
A British harm reduction organization, WEDINOS, also reported the combination of ocfentanil, paracetamol and caffeine in heroin samples bought from the hidden web.
Chest pain, psychosis and agitation reported.
One fatality due to heroin bought in the hidden web and adulterated with Ocfentanil.

12. Presence on the drug market
Ocfentanil had never been detected in samples sold trough traditional markets.
No web pages or individuals advertising ocfentanil were found on the surface internet or on any of the main hidden web marketplaces.
The alert launched by Energy Control quickly spread in both the surface web and the hidden web.
Discussion on fora pointed to two specific vendors (FRENCHCONNECTION and EuropeDrugs). Were eventually banned from marketplaces.

14. 2013 4th sample sent to Energy Control (unknown vendor)
March 2016
4th sample sent to Energy Control (unknown vendor)
Sept 2013
Dutch police seizes batch of ocfentanil, caffeine and paracetamol
March 2015
Belgium citizen found dead at home
2013
2013
2014
2015
2016
110 días
Energy Control's 3 samples (Europdrugs & frenchconnection)
153 días
Wedinos' 6 samples

15. Discussion
We hypothesize that its introduction into the market was done by one unique agent, which did not consider selling the compound through the usual NPS and “legal highs” internet channels.
Outbreaks of heroin adulterated with fentanyls might be very challenging if they originate from the internet.
Drug testing might prove an useful monitoring tool, as new fentanyl derivatives will certainly emerge in the near future.

16. Conclusions The drug user community reacted to the adulteration.
Although previous research has suggested that adulteration might be lower in hidden web marketplaces, it is indeed a real risk in the Deep Web.

17. A few questions for the audience…
Is the extension of this phenomenon to the hidden web a sign that the fentanyls problem is growing?
What was the drive that led to using ocfentanil as an adulterant, instead of other already marketed fentanyl derivatives such as butyrfentanyl or acetylfentanyl?
As ocfentanil is not a world-wide controlled substance, why was it not sold as a “legal high” in the first place?

18. Thanks! Contact Mireia Ventura mireia@energycontrol.org Pol Quintana
With the collaboration of: