At least 20 killed in Argentina after taking opioid-laced cocaine

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Buenos Aires authorities believe a war between drug traffickers may be behind the suspiciously poisoned batch of cocaine that killed at least 20 and hospitalized 74 more in the city Wednesday.

18 of those in the hospital are requiring mechanical respiration as of Thursday morning, while a dozen people have been arrested for the deaths.

Experts were still analyzing the drug to determine what was in it that caused the deaths. Judicial officials said one hypothesis being considered was that the cocaine was intentionally adulterated as part of a settling of scores between traffickers.

Police said that the cocaine was sold in the poor neighborhood “Puerta 8” in San Martín — a suburb to the north of Argentina’s capital — and that a dozen people had been arrested.

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This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief