TERRIFYING

California Duo Busted With Enough Elephant Tranquilizer to Kill 50 Million People: Officials

The pair allegedly had 21 kilograms of carfentanil, a synthetic opioid 100 times more potent than fentanyl.

Cops searching a home in California’s Riverside County this week made a stunning discovery: 21 kilograms of carfentanil, a powerful synthetic opioid that is 10,000 times more potent than morphine and 100 times more potent than fentanyl. It was the county’s largest ever haul of carfentanil. Andres Jesus Morales, 30, and Alyssa Christine Ponce, 27, were charged with multiple felonies. Several kilograms of cocaine and heroin were also found in the home, officials alleged. “If mixed in with other drugs, the 21 (kilograms) of carfentanil seized could have been enough to potentially kill more than 50 million people,” the Riverside District Attorney’s Office said in a press release.