Percocet was really heroin in disguise

Police and deputies in Logan County say they’ve never seen this drug problem before, and it ushers in a new era in the heroin epidemic: pills that were labeled a pharmaceutical-grade medication that was actually illegal heroin.

The packaging was so convincing, even officers thought the blue pills were Percocet, that is until they got lab results back from the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation.

The discovery stemmed from a raid in Bellefontaine on March 20. Deangelo Dequinn Harper, 29, and Erin Marie Ratleff, 34, were arrested with drugs and paraphernalia, including what appeared to be prescription drugs.

Sgt. Jason Lapp, Bellefontaine Police Department, said they “recovered a lot of drugs, crack cocaine, marijuana and the blue pills that were believed to be oxycodone, but when they were sent to the lab, they came back as being heroin.”

“This is actually the first incident I’m aware of,” Lapp said, “and it’s the first incident our task force is aware of.”

What worries police is that, “This is the future.” Lapp said “This is on the horizon. We’re going to see more and more of this as time goes on.”

While both drugs are opiates, there is a problem. Switching out drugs like percocet for heroin increases the chance of overdose.

“You have someone who thinks they’re getting a pharmaceutical-grade opiate, such as percocet,” said Lapp. “They think they’re getting a 30 milligram pill. However, unbeknownst to them, there’s heroin in it. And they keep taking this drug and all of a sudden, they’re addicted to heroin.”

“The drug traffickers and the manufacturers out there,” said Lapp, “they’re doing anything they can to stay one step ahead of law enforcement, and that’s why it’s important for us to stay abreast of the latest trends and keep on top of it.

Lapp said, “This case here is definitely just a drop in the bucket of what’s to come and what’s out there now and we really need the public’s help to do our job.”