Illegal online sales of prescription drugs to teens increase as school year starts

As many Washington, D.C., students return to school this month, authorities are warning parents that the new school year often brings a spike in the sale of dangerous illegal drugs over the internet.

“Parents are not aware of it,” said Mike Prado, deputy director of Homeland Security Investigations and head of the agency’s Cyber ​​Crimes Center. “They still think that if their child gets involved with drugs, they’re going to get it from a friend or on a street corner.”

According to Prado, more and more teens are turning to social media sites, such as Snapchat and TikTok, to purchase illegally obtained prescription painkillers, including OxyContin, Percocet, Xanax and Adderall.

Buyers and traders can hide their tracks on social media sites by using emojis and direct messaging features to coordinate transactions.

“More and more we see that kids and teens can go online and have access to this, just like a regular online marketplace,” Prado said. “Unfortunately, it’s so easy.”

What’s more, drug cartels are secretly laced many of the counterfeit pills with lethal doses of fentanyl, a potentially deadly synthetic opioid, Prado said. Those are called “fenta pills.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has seen a steady increase in overdose deaths since 2020, with most of the deaths caused by fentanyl mixed with other drugs such as methamphetamine, a man-made stimulant.

“It’s one of those things where you don’t know what you’re taking and you’re really taking your life in your hands,” Prado said. “Even though it’s illegal, it shouldn’t be a death sentence for someone to obtain a narcotic.”

Prado said his agency is seeing an increase in these illegal sales as teens return to school.

“Whether it’s high school or college, kids are socializing again,” he said. “And sometimes we see an increase in recreational drug use. It’s important for parents to be aware of that.”