California overdose death linked to opioid three times stronger than fentanyl, federal prosecutors say

A Santa Clarita man was charged this week in what federal prosecutors believe is the country’s first death due to a synthetic opioid three times stronger than fentanyl.

Benjamin Anthony Collins, 21, is being held without bond for allegedly selling pills containing protonitazene to a 22-year-old man and resident of Stevenson Ranch, the U.S. attorney’s office said in a news release. The victim died shortly after taking the pills and was found by his mother outside her home in the front seat of his car.

Collins is charged with the distribution of protonitazene resulting in death and, if convicted, faces a minimum sentence of 20 years and a maximum sentence of life in prison. He was arrested a month after the victim died, and investigators found large quantities of other drugs in his vehicle, including ketamine, according to court records.

Collins had a long history of drug dealing, prosecutors said. “After this incident — and after learning that his pills killed the decedent — Collins continues to deal drugs openly and prolifically and advertises his drug dealing services on Instagram live video,” according to court records.

Hours before his death, the victim called Collins asking for Percocet pills — Collins sold him five oxycodone pills for $20 each, investigators said. In text messages before the deal, they discussed recent deaths caused by fake or laced pills, court records showed:

“I need real Perc’s tho.... Cuz my boy just died.... I get worried,” the victim said in one text message. Collins responded, “yeah bro same with my best friend bro. He just died 3 days ago. Off fake pills.” Collins then said, “those fake Perc’s get you . . I test all my [expletive] ... negative evry time.”

Collins admitted to investigators that he sold drugs for money and knew about the victim’s death.

Protonitazene, which is reportedly three times stronger than the synthetic opioid fentanyl, has been sold over the internet in recent years, according to a release from the U.S. attorney’s office. The Drug Enforcement Administration issued a notice of intent to add protonitazene and another emergent “nitazene” drug to the Controlled Substances Act as Schedule I narcotics only two months ago.

Protonitazene “is a ‘nitazene,’ a class of opioid developed in the 1950s as a substitute for morphine that was so powerful that the FDA refused to approve its use,” according to court documents.

A federal complaint from the Southern District of New York charged two men with distributing fentanyl mixed with protonitazene to a confidential source working with law enforcement in April. No deaths were related with that case.