The Mecosta County Sheriff’s Office would like the public to be aware of pills seized during the course of a search warrant last week with pharmaceutical markings, that after being tested were discovered to be Methamphetamine. We would like to alert those in our community of this danger, so that they have the information needed to protect themselves and our children.

Counterfeit pills are illegally manufactured by criminal drug networks and are made to look like real prescription opioid medications such as oxycodone (Oxycontin®, Percocet®), hydrocodone (Vicodin®), and alprazolam (Xanax®); or stimulants like amphetamines (Adderall®). Fake prescription pills are widely accessible and often sold on social media and e-commerce platforms – making them available to anyone with a smartphone, including minors. Counterfeit pills that contain these dangerous and extremely addictive drugs are more lethal and more accessible than ever before.

The drug overdose crisis in the United States is a serious public safety threat with rates currently reaching the highest level in history. Drug traffickers and those producing these pills in their own homes are using fake pills to exploit the opioid crisis and prescription drug misuse in the United States, bringing overdose deaths and violence to American communities. Fentanyl is the primary driver of this alarming increase in overdose deaths. However, as seen here locally, methamphetamine is increasingly being found to be pressed into counterfeit pills.

The Mecosta County Sheriff’s Office and local law enforcement officials ask the public to be aware of the dangers of counterfeit pills and to only use medications prescribed by medical professionals and dispensed by a licensed pharmacist. Pills purchased outside of a licensed pharmacy are illegal, dangerous, and potentially lethal.