Two die, four in hospital for drug overdoses

A man and a woman are dead and four other people have been hospitalized for drug overdoses, the Saskatoon Police Service said in a media release on Sunday evening.

Police have arrested three men and they face drug traffickingrelated charges.

Police have also issued a public safety advisory. They are warning anyone who may have purchased cocaine from a drug dealer named “Lil Joe” or “Joe Bro” or have contacted a dealer with the number 306-881-7300, that the drug they purchased could be laced with fentanyl. Police say the dosage of fentanyl in the drug may be lethal.

Emergency responders were called to three separate locations between 7:30 to 10:30 a.m. on Saturday to respond to 911 calls. At about 7:30 a.m. at the first home, on Murphy Crescent, they found two men, aged 21 and 24 suffering from apparent drug overdoses. They were taken to a hospital where they are now recovering, police said in the release.

Emergency responders were then called to another home at around 9:45 a.m. Saturday, this time in the 3000 block of Arlington Avenue. There, they found two men, aged 27 and 31, also suffering from apparent drug overdoses. One man has since died and the other is in a hospital recovering.

Responders were called to a third home at 10:30 a.m. At a home in the 300 block of Avenue W North, they found two women, aged 25 and 48. The 48-year-old woman has died and the 25-year-old woman, found unresponsive, is being treated in a hospital.

That night, police arrested a 29-year-old man at about 10:15 p.m. The man was arrested and faces a charge of trafficking a controlled substance.

Police arrested another man shortly after midnight and he faces a charge of trafficking a controlled substance, police said in the release.

Police, including members of the Tactical Support Unit, searched a home in the 100 block of Pawlychenko Lane, where a 29-year-old man was arrested.

Between the arrests and the search, police say they seized more than $14,000 in cash, 11.16 grams of cocaine/fentanyl, 149.88 grams of cocaine, 31.13 grams of heroin, and 34.44 grams of marijuana, a firearm and ammunition.

Police are now asking anyone who may have purchased cocaine from either “Lil Joe”, “Joe Bro” or via a dealer reached at the cellphone number they released, to turn it in to the front desk of police headquarters for disposal.

In the media release, Saskatoon police say they are not looking to charge anyone in possession of this cocaine, but “we are interested in the health and safety of the public.”

Police are asking anyone with information to call them or Crime Stoppers.