Police report third death from tainted drugs

Tainted drugs have claimed another life in Saskatoon.

A 25-year-old woman who reportedly ended up in a coma after consuming fentanyl-laced cocaine has died in hospital.

Police reported the woman passed away Thursday night.

She was among six people who overdosed over a three-hour span on the morning of March 10, prompting police to issue a warning including the street name and phone number of a dealer linked to a batch of cocaine cut with the deadly opiate.

Two other people also died of overdoses linked to the tainted cocaine. Another three people reportedly recovered after being rushed to hospital.

Police arrested three men suspected of selling the fentanyl-laced cocaine behind the March 10 overdoses. So far, all three face drug trafficking charges, as well as weapons charges related to a .45-calibre pistol seized during the arrests.

In a press conference earlier this week, Supt. David Haye stressed the investigation is ongoing, and didn’t rule out the possibility of adding manslaughter charges.

Anyone who may have bought tainted drugs is still being asked to turn them in at police headquarters, with the assurance they won’t face a possession charge.