A man died and a woman was hospitalized after they overdosed on fentanyl Thursday in the University City neighborhood.
The DEA is investigating the case, and hazmat crews are assisting due to the dangers the illicit drug imposes to anyone who comes in contact with it.
The overdose victims were discovered in a unit at the Canyon Park Apartments off Genesee Avenue near the East Gate Mall Friday morning.
The DEA confirmed a large amount of fentanyl was also found in an apartment. The synthetic opioid is 80 to 100 times more powerful than morphine and can be lethal in micro doses, according to the DEA.
The hazmat crew, San Diego Police Department officers, and DEA investigators were still set up in the complex’s parking lot Friday night and said they expected to be there all night.
Michelle Andretta, a neighbor of the man who died, said she’s noticed odd behavior at the apartment recently. She says her neighbor was once a family man, but said things changed about two years ago when the man’s children and their mother moved out.
Andretta’s daughter Erica Lenor also noticed odd behavior, but she never imagined it involved such a potent dangerous drug.
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“They would come back a week later and they would start all over again. Packing up suitcases and leaving,” Lenor said. “It is really creepy knowing that was going on and nobody had any idea.”
The identity of the deceased man is still not known at this time. No evacuation orders were issued amid the investigation.
