RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – (Infobae) Since 2013, an unprecedented surge in fentanyl overdose deaths has been caused by heroin laced with illicitly produced fentanyl and/or fentanyl analogs (FAs) sold as heroin.
For years, China has been a primary source of fentanyl trafficked into the West. It is a powerful prescription drug for severe pain that’s made and sold illegally. It led to more than 37,000 overdose deaths in the U.S. in 2019, part of a national opioid crisis that has worsened this year during the coronavirus pandemic, according to federal health authorities.
Official China pretends to be worried but is not doing a lot against the wave of death that is sweeping the world from its shores.
Is it payback? Remember: It was the Opium Wars between Western powers and the Qing dynasty in the mid-19th century that subsequently-imposed treaties weakened the Qing dynasty and Chinese governments, and forced China to open specified treaty ports (especially Shanghai) that handled all trade with imperial powers.
In addition China gave the sovereignty over Hong Kong to Britain, a humiliation for this power-spoiled empire that it will never forget. And neither should we.
The systematic failure to fulfill its pledge to put an end to precursor chemical exporters raises suspicions of complicity behind the lack of action: is Beijing shielding the first link in the chain of trafficking of opioids, fentanyl and death that is affecting part of the population all over the world?
Is the regime a partner or does it only focus its efforts on repressing ethnic minorities? For its part, why is Mexico not intercepting shipments coming in with a mere postage stamp? What is certain is that the 64 companies identified in this report continue to operate and cross the Pacific Ocean with only one destination: the large drug cartels.
Likewise, no time is invested in seizing the machinery used to create fentanyl pills. A simple compression device can produce between 3,000 and 5,000 fentanyl pills per hour. Such an industrial device can be purchased in as little as 2 minutes on Alibaba for US$500. The complete assembly line? A total of US$1,000 at the lowest denomination. It will take around 2 weeks to reach its destination depending on stock. Another few dollars more – paid with cryptocurrencies or another non-traceable means – will secure the needed raw material without setting off too many alarms on either side of the ocean.
That raw material is composed of fentanyl and “cutting agents” such as flour, talc, lactose, sugar, caffeine, starch. Everything is sourced in China.
If the business progresses, the investment to exponentially increase production will not be significant: with an additional US$5,000, a higher-capacity processor can be purchased to enable the production of between 10,000 and 18,000 pills per hour. In a few months, the profit could reach the extraordinary sum of between US$5 million and US$20 million. This is tempting for both drug traffickers and those who turn a blind eye in exchange for a generous commission. Mexican cartels do this on a large scale.
Fentanyl is one of the most potent opioids. It is 100 times more powerful than morphine, and an indefinite dose can be lethal, as is occurring in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany and Australia. It was introduced on the market in 1963 as an intravenous anesthetic, but it took generations for its use to spiral out of control. The synthetic pill made in the dens of the Mexican drug underworld does not come with a quality stamp: it only takes a single pill containing a defective composition for the victim to suffer convulsions that will kill him or her in minutes.
The “companies” exporting these machines and the raw material have been identified. Infobae had access to a confidential list in the hands of the Beijing regime authorities, who have not yet triggered the judicial and police mechanisms to take action against them. Their reluctance to repress them is feeding the cartels’ pockets… and those of some officials who would rather keep their eyes closed for the time being. To complete the report, the address of these companies has been included.
The complete list:
1 – APEX Specialty Chemical Medicines Trading Co: located at 555 Ren Min Street in the city of Guangzhou, in the province with the same name. Its products include fentanyl and carfentanil, a derivative of fentanyl. It was founded in 2009. It accepts payments by Western Union. It was renamed two years later as Apex Specialty Chemical Medicines Trading Ltd.
2 – Chenxu Hebei Biotechnology Co.: exporting corporation of pharmaceutical components whose sales include fentanyl. It is located in the Hubei Province. Founded in 2018. It was renamed in 2020 under Hebei Chenxu Biotechnology Ltd.: markets fentanyl HCL, acetylfentanyl, methalfentanyl, carfentanyl and acrylfentanyl to foreign countries. Located in the state of the same name. Founded in 2020. Accepts Western Union and MoneyGram transactions.
3 – Amadis Chemical Company: this company, in addition to supplying raw materials, provides technical assistance to the cartels on the other side of the Pacific. Carbohydrates, nucleosides, pharmaceutical ingredients, phosphoramidites and fentanyl. It was founded in 2011 and operates at 166 Xinagmao Street in Hangzhou City, Zheijiang.
4 – Asia Chemical Manufacturing: is a supplier of pharmaceutical products such as acetylfentanyl. It has direct ties with India and Brazil. It is located at 66 Guoji Street in Zhengzhou City, Henan Province.
5 – China Biological Technology Laboratory: it is one of the most important and thriving companies in the pharmaceutical industry in China. Its offices are located in Xinhua Street, in Dehui City in Jilin.
6 – NanJing ZhongCheng China Industry Co. Ltd.: it is an online seller of drugs and all kinds of fentanyl derivatives. It supplies both individuals and companies worldwide. It is located in Huatai District, Jiangsu.
7 – Chiyang Biological Technology Company: produces and exports chemicals, including fentanyl. Located at 125 Xinhua Street in Shijiazhuang, Hebei province. Accepts transfers through Western Union, bitcoin or Money Gram.
8 – Doctor Chemicals: pledges to sell “the purest quality chemicals on the market.” Exports in large quantities. Its offices are located at 4 Xiangyang Street, Liwan District, Guangzhou. It markets simply by email. “We understand that our customers demand privacy, so we take special care with our customers’ packages,” is one of its main distinguishing features.
9 – Fisher Chemicals: all fentanyl derivatives are on their online menu. Address: 6046 Shennan Boulevard, Futian District, Guangdong. Their shipments leave from Shanghai or Hong Kong ports.
10 – Fu Bai Na Chemical Reagents Pharmaceutical Co. ships fentanyl all over the world, but like the others, particularly to Mexico. It is located in Shijiazhuang, Hebei province.
11 – CN Chemicals: produces and exports pharmaceutical derivatives of all kinds, including fentanyl, carfentanyl and acetylfentanyl. Its administrative operations base is located in Shanghai.
12 – Hebei Guikai Trading Company: same business, same products. It claims to export to Holland, Portugal, Australia, Poland, Russia, United Kingdom, United States, France, New Zealand, Middle East. It is located at 1 Qinhuang Street, Handan High-tech District, Hebei Province.
13 – Hebei Huidou Chemical Material Company: drug production and export. It offers all fentanyl derivatives and is located in the same province as the previous one: Hebei, where this industry seems to flourish. Their payment method? Through bitcoin and PayPal.
14 – : located at 20 East Road, Changan District, Hebei.
15 – Hebei Zhongding Medical Research: production and export of fentanyl and carfentanil. Can even be purchHebei Biotech Companyased through Skype. Bitcoin and Western Union are welcome to complete the business transaction.
16 – Henan Tianfu Chemical Company: claims to develop 500 components for export. Fentanyl is among them, the one it markets the most. It is in office 801 of a building located in Qingnian Street, in the city of Zhengzhou, Henan.
17 – Hengxin Pharmaceutical Company: uses bitcoin and Western Union as the main transaction methods in its fentanyl trafficking. City: Baoding. Province: Hebei.
18 – Hong Kong GR Chemical Laboratory: exports chemical compounds including carfentanil, fentanyl and fentanyl HCL. It is located in the port of Hong Kong and from there it ships its products worldwide. It also operates with cryptocurrencies.
19 – Iamcor Biotech Company: provides all types of drugs and the components to compound the pills that are an epidemic in the United States. Address: Xinhua District 168, Shijiazhuang, Hebei.
20 – Kinbester: manufactures, markets and distributes advanced chemicals used in the pharmaceutical and narcotics industry. Sufentanil citrate is among its products.
21 – Leebiochem: production and export of fentanyl. It is located in Shenzhen City, Guangdong Province.
22 – Pharmaceutical Chemical Company: produces and markets all kinds of ingredients and chemical components needed for potential compounding. They boast of “distributing products to a large part of the world”. It also offers a list of products that are banned in China itself, according to its laws, but nothing is done. It is based in Jiangsu province.
23 – Plk Biotech Company: located at 446 Xisanzhuang Street in the city of Shijiazhuang, Hebei.
24 – Puyer BioPharma Ltd.: from animal health to crop science, this company also markets the chemicals needed to produce fentanyl pills. Located in building 2, 58 Chongchuan Street in Nantong, Jiangsu Province, it accepts bank transfers, PayPal and Western Union.
25 – Raw Chems: “We leave our mark all over the world,” is one of their mottos. It’s true: they ship their products to multiple countries on different continents. It is based in Guangdong province.
26 – RichChemStore Ltd.: they ship pure fentanyl and carfentanil to Mexico. They are located in Huinan City, Hebei Province.
27 – Royal Pharmaceuticals: fentanyl is one of them, but it also distributes xanax, percocet, metadonin, actavis, alprazolam and oxycodone. Based in the well-known city of Wuhan, Hubei, it accepts all types of payments.
28 – Shanghai Huilitongda Biological Technology Company: online sale of compounds, located in this huge and modern port city.
29 – Shanghai Lanjing Biotechnology Company: same conditions as above.
30 – Shengjiao Pharmaceutical Chemicals: produces and exports chemicals that are then used for fentanyl trafficking. Its offices are located in the city of Shijiazhuang, Hebei.
31 – Tellychemicals: operates online for most of its orders. Exports mainly a powdered cut for fentanyl and methamphetamine. City: Shenzhen; province: Guangdong.
32 – Wanke Bio Medicinal Company Ltd.: pharmaceutical chemicals, including fentanyl, carfentanil and HCL. It operates from its offices in Shanghai.
33 – Xingtai Import and Export Chemical Company: sells all kinds of compounds necessary for the production of fentanyl tablets. It is located at 5 Xinxi Street, Xingtai, Hebei.
34 – Xuyang Biotechnology Company Ltd.: is under state control and has six subsidiaries. There are doubts about its location: some place it in Hebei province, others in Hubei. Its preferred ports: Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Shanghai.
35 – Beijing Huikang Boyuan Chemical Technology Company Ltd.: located in the Fengtai district of Beijing, it is key to the sale of chemical compounds that support the production of fentanyl.
36 – Hangzhou NeWay Chemical Company Ltd.: production and sale of intermediate chemical ingredients. Located at 139 Qingchun Street, Hangzhou, Zhejiang province.
37 – Tocopharm: calls itself a market leader in the supply of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs).
38 – Beacky Technobiological Company Ltd.: markets all the chemical intermediates for the final product.
39 – Chang Zhou Technobiological Company Ltd.: fentanyl cutting chemicals. Location: Wujin District, Changzhou City, Jiangsu Province.
40 – Chemlyte Solutions: chemical manufacturer and distributor throughout China. Address: Shenhua 789, Hangzhou, Zhejiang.
41 – China Huasheng International: claims to be “specialized in producing and exporting high quality chemical intermediates”. It is a major supplier of precursors.
42 – Finipharma Ltd.: specializes in Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients and is a supplier of research, development and production chemicals. It is located in Nantong, Jiangsu province.
43 – Fluoropharm Ltd.: seller and producer of active pharmaceutical ingredients and fine chemicals. In total, this Chinese company claims to have the capacity to market over 1,000 varieties of synthetics. Company location: Nanhuan 4028, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province.
44 – Hallochem Group Ltd.: this company produces and exports fentanyl and other compounds to countries such as Mexico. It is located in Venus Science Incubation Center, 60 Xinguang Street, Chongqing, Sichuan Province.
45 – Hangzhou Ocean Chemical Ltd.: production, distribution, sale and marketing of chemical products, including fentanyl and its derivatives. It also sells so-called “rare” products for the chemical industry. Location: Xiancheng district, Zhejiang province.
46 – Hygeia Pharmaceutical Technology Company Ltd.: focuses on the sale and distribution of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs). New drug and chemical material developments. Address: fifth floor of building 2 of Shangding International, Renmin South Road, Chengdu, Sichuan Province.
47 – H&Y International Group Ltd.: “global producer and supplier of pharmaceutical intermediates for large and small customers.” It is located in Zhejiang province.
48 – Jiangsu Dahua Industrial Company Ltd.: production of fine chemicals and agrochemicals for marketing. From inks to coatings manufacturers. Its products include fentanyl and others that serve as a cutting agent for drugs trafficked from Mexico to the United States. Jiangsu Province.
49 – Jinan Qinmu Chemical Company Ltd.: synthetic and organic compounds tailored to the client’s needs, one of the company’s main assets. Founded in 2008. Location: Jinan city in Shandong province.
50 – Lianyungang Shenghong Ltd.: producer and distributor of biotech products, including unprocessed chemical material and fentanyl. It is located in Jiangsu province.
51 – Nanjing Fine Technology Company Ltd.: its flagship products include Alfentanil and Remifentanil. It is located at 9 Weidi Street, in a technological district of Nanjing City, Jiangsu.
52 – Natural Micron Pharm Tech: focused on research, development, production and marketing of high quality finished chemicals.
53 – Sancai Industry Ltd.: engaged in the marketing of chemicals, food and nutrition, personal care, medicines and other products. Located in Shandong.
54 – Shanghai Phoenix Chemicals Inc.: produces and exports chemical derivatives and IFA. Address: Anzhi 100, Shanghai.
55 – Shanghai Chang Yan Chem & Tech Ltd.: specializes in customized products. These products are clearly precursors for the production of the powerful opioid. It is located at 46 Zhongke Street, Pudong, Shanghai.
56 – Shanxi Jinwei Technology Ltd.: same activity as above. Its offices are in Taiyuan, Shanxi province.
57 – Skyrun Industrial: state-controlled, specializes in the worldwide sale of chemicals, particularly raw pharmaceuticals. It is located in Zhejiang province.
58 – Suzhou Bailitai Technology Ltd: state-of-the-art technology development company, and one of China’s top chemical suppliers. Location of operations: Pudoong, Shanghai.
59 – Xiamen Zhongyuan Hongye Chemical Ltd.: chemical supplements, organic and inorganic, distributed worldwide. Markets medical devices and is considered a hub for biological and chemical sciences. Xiamen District in Fujian.
60 – Yick-Vic Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd.: based in Hong Kong, this company exports fentalin and derivatives worldwide, mainly to Mexico.
61 – Zehaochem Ltd.: development, production and marketing of chemicals. The company is located at 69 Huayang Street, Jinan City, Shandong.
62 – Trust&We Ltd.: this company is one of the largest chemical suppliers in the country. It is located in Pudong, Shanghai.
63 – Neostar United Ltd.: based in Changzhou, it markets large quantities of chemicals all over the world. From ocfentanyl to beta-hydroxyfentanyl.
64 – Zhibgweiye Biological Technology Ltd.: fentanyl, its analogues and other drugs are listed in the company’s catalog. Address: Zhongxin 176, Xingtai City, Hebei Province.
All these corporations, individually, maintain contact with Mexico’s major drug cartels, particularly with those most involved in fentanyl trafficking: Sinaloa and Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), who have found a new opportunity with this drug. One of the visible faces of this illegal industry was identified a few days ago: Juan Manuel Abouzaid El Bayeh, alias “El Árabe,” identified by the US Treasury Department as one of the CJNG’s main fentanyl traffickers.
Many of the companies listed operate by concealing the actual chemicals they ship abroad. They disguise them under a particular label: “research chemicals” or “custom synthesis.” They also use online websites that are not run directly by their visible managers, but rather in parallel. They operate through social networks to weave their contacts around the world. The regime has made some efforts, but these are laughable given the speed with which these companies mutate their nature… and “persuade” those who should control them.
Epidemic
The boom in fentanyl over heroin, for example, is simply explained: it is vastly cheaper. A RAND Corporation report published in 2019 and entitled The Future of Fentanyl and Other Synthetic Opioids “identified multiple Chinese companies that are willing to ship a kilogram of nearly pure fentanyl for between US$2,000 to US$5,000,” far cheaper than the same amount of Mexican heroin worth US$25,000. This explains the explosion in consumption.
This type of drug carries a subsequent risk of dependence and overdose. And fentanyl – whose extensive use has exploded in recent years – is the clearest example. The distinctive features of its use – without medical prescription – are reduced consciousness, pupil contraction and respiratory depression associated with loss of reflexes and the risk of asphyxiation. A potentially fatal cocktail, it can lead to cardiorespiratory arrest and subsequent death. If ingested orally, it is metabolized by the liver. This means that, after consumption, most of the drug is eliminated as it is passed to the intestine through the liver and before it can reach the blood system. But those who use it addictively choose a more effective and direct route to achieve its sedative effects: administration through the blood. An injection that can be lethal.
Source: Infobae