Fentanyl in local election mail may be a start. How law enforcement and mail carriers should prepare for threats in 2024

The country watched last month as letters containing fentanyl were sent to election officials. To date, over a dozen letters have been identified across six states, some of which we’ve supported investigations in. The sole intent of these letters was to disrupt the election process, our election process, even if these elections were on the smaller scale. A dry run? Perhaps, but given the rhetoric around the last presidential match up, it's fair to say that we should be prepared for anything in 2024.

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Sending fentanyl through the mail system is not a new event. Prior to involvement from the Mexican Drug Trafficking Organizations (DTOs), fentanyl was simply ordered over the dark web and shipped to U.S. addresses. However, these prior instances involved packages specifically designed to contain and preserve the integrity of the shipment which limited the potential for exposure. These recent cases involving threats against election officials lacks any containment, making it potentially much more dangerous. The intent to disperse the compound, increases exposure to a larger population that comes into contact with everyday mail.

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Although the risk of overdosing on fentanyl due to simply getting it on your skin (transdermal exposure) is low, there are two primary concerns when mail containing fentanyl is sent through our mail system: First, the potential for fentanyl particles to become airborne, and second, downstream or secondary exposure. The first is a problem for both the mail room and for whoever opens the mail. Fentanyl particles can become aerosolized, posing an inhalation hazard, and raising significant concerns for anyone who happens to inhale these particles. Inhalation of enough particles and it becomes an overdose situation. The more sinister threat, one that could expose anyone, is the downstream effect, the contamination from cross exposure that gets just enough into someone’s home to cause an overdose. These kinds of overdoses are more of a function of poor personal hygiene intersecting with people how have low resistance to opioids, small children for example.

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Fentanyl as a Weapon

Fentanyl has proliferated in the drug market because of its profitability and ease of acquisition. As a consequence, fentanyl has become easily accessible in today’s open drug markets often being advertised through social media channels. With the availability of fentanyl, there is an increasing number of variations ranging from the powerful carfentanyl to the newer and increasingly available nitazine compounds. We know that more powerful compounds are being introduced to the market on a regular basis as tracked by the National Forensic Laboratory Information System. Estimates vary between hundreds to thousands of potential fentanyl analogues. In addition, to new fentanyl analogues there are new non-opioid substances entering the drug supply. The combination of factors creates an opportunity for non-state actors, domestic terrorist groups, and the occasional lone wolf to easily acquire and disperse these compounds with the express intent to instill fear and sow chaos. With a presidential election less than a year away, it would be negligent to ignore. ?

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Threats in Your Mailbox

The potential for fentanyl to become aerosolized within mail facilities presents a significant threat, highlighting the need to promptly identify and contain hazards to prevent harm to personnel and the public. The inhalation hazard posed by fentanyl in mail facilities underscores the critical need for advanced detection systems to safeguard the well-being of personnel working in these environments and mitigate the potential health risks associated with exposure.

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It may also be an opportune time to introduce legislation like the Screening All Fentanyl-Enhanced Mail Act[A2]?, which was initially proposed to develop and deploy technology detecting synthetic opioids, like fentanyl in international mail. We’re seeing other policies in action, including with a diplomatic agreement between President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping on curbing the import of chemicals used to make fentanyl to the U.S. But we all know these will take time, on the scale of years.

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Threats to Public Health: ??

Recent events, such as the fentanyl exposure of toddlers at a daycare facility in New York, serve as poignant potential of the downstream effects of these dangerous drugs. While adult transdermal exposure can be mitigated by awareness and common hygiene practices, children have a higher risk by introducing fentanyl through oral and nasal routes and they have a significantly lower tolerance for opioids. The DEA notes overdose amounts for low tolerance individuals to be between 0.02mg to 5.1mg. At 0.02mg the lethal dose for some fentanyl compounds is about the size of a single, small grain of salt.

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Law enforcement and public safety officers can’t detect these substances with the naked eye, which is why they need increased training, tools, and support to identify drugs on the streets, and in particular, in trace amounts and various physical forms such as liquids, solids, vapors, and aerosols.

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As our nation grapples with the evolving challenges of fentanyl distribution, through the mail system and otherwise, we need to take a hard look at how to enhance safety and security. A call to action is warranted for increased awareness and the implementation of proactive measures to mitigate the risks associated with fentanyl – before it’s too late.?