The Rochester Police Department and the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office have issued a joint warning about what may be a lethal batch of street drugs.
Sheriff Patrick O’Flynn and Police Chief Michael Ciminelli say there have been four deaths in the city over the past two days under circumstances indicating they were caused by heroin or a related drug. There have four other cases in which the victims were saved by narcan, the anti overdose drug. Seven of the victims were men and one a woman. None of the names have been released yet.
Three of the victims were from Rochester, three from the suburbs and two from outside the area. The Monroe County Medical Examiner is working to confirm the causes of their deaths.
Both departments are warning about drugs packaged in envelopes with a purple, red and white emblem of a bulldog wearing sunglasses; envelopes with a golden skull on a black background; bags with a red shark and the word “predator;” bags with a golden eagle and the words “new arrival;” and bags with a blue skeleton and the words “jingle killer.”
The chief and the sheriff conferred over the weekend and both agencies are working together with law enforcement and social services agencies to get the word out about this issue. They urge anyone using drugs to seek help for addiction now.