A congressional report released Wednesday lays out just how easy it is for Americans to buy the deadly opioid fentanyl from Chinese suppliers online and have it shipped to them via the government’s own postal service. The report also lays out just how difficult the practice will be to stop.

After Googling phrases such as “fentanyl for sale,” Senate investigators followed up with just six of the online sellers they found. This eventually led them to 500 financial transaction records, accounting for about $766 million worth of fentanyl entering the country and at least seven traceable overdose deaths.

The 100-page report was based on a year-long probe by a Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs subcommittee. Overall, it confirms that supplies of the powerful and addictive opioid along with other illicit drugs are pouring in from China, which the Drug Enforcement Administration has long suspected

The easy access is particularly alarming as the US is grappling with a devastating epidemic of opioid addiction, which killed 42,000 in 2016 alone. The report also lays bare the easily exploited weaknesses in the US Postal Service’s international shipping processes and service obligations.

“Thanks to our bipartisan investigation, we now know the depth to which drug traffickers exploit our mail system to ship fentanyl and other synthetic drugs into the United States,” Republican Senator Rob Portman of Ohio said in a statement. “The federal government can, and must, act to shore up our defenses against this deadly drug and help save lives.”

Portman, along with Democratic Senator Tom Carper of Delaware, requested the probe.

Simple search

Investigators started with simple Google searches and then engaged six sellers out of dozens they found. Posing as first-time fentanyl shoppers, investigators noted that the sellers were incredibly responsive, some replying to emails and customer service forms within minutes or hours. If the investigators were slow to respond to messages, the sellers followed up by offering deals and discounts.

The sellers tended to prefer cryptocurrency payments, primarily bitcoin, but they also accepted payments through Western Union, MoneyGram, PayPal, credit cards, and prepaid gift cards. They also strongly preferred using the Express Mail Service (EMS), which is a global delivery system that uses each country’s postal service, including the USPS. This way, packages were shipped either directly from China to the US or through “low risky” [sic] European countries. Some sellers warned that using carriers such as UPS, FedEX, or DHL were not safe and are detained frequently.

Though the investigators didn’t place any orders, they were able to use payment information records and shipping addresses they collected to investigate past transactions from the US. Piecing the bits together, the investigators identified 500 financial transactions with more than 300 US-based individuals and companies. Those US-based buyers spanned 43 states, with the most purchases coming from Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Florida. Collectively, buyers spent $230,000 on fentanyl, but the US street value of the purchased amount is estimated to be at least $766 million.

Having identified individual purchases, the investigators were able to link the drugs to at least seven deaths. That includes a 49-year-old Ohioan who died in early 2017 after paying one seller $2,500 for 15 packages sent through the USPS between May 2016 and February 2017.

Tracking tracking

Figuring out why sellers preferred using the USPS was as easy as finding the sellers, the investigators learned. Unlike “express consignment operators” (ECOs) such as FedEx, DHL, and UPS, the postal service isn’t required to collect what’s called “advanced electronic data,” or AED. This is simply basic information about a package, including sender and recipient names and addresses, as well as a description of the package contents. That information can be sent to US Customs and Border Protection, who can screen and inspect suspicious packages on their way in.

After September 11, Congress required private carriers to collect AED, which collectors subsequently send to customs for screening. But the postal service doesn’t and can’t—its hands are essentially tied on the matter.

The USPS is a member of the Universal Postal Union, which governs international mail delivery and does not require AED for packages. As a union member, the USPS is obligated to receive, process, and deliver packages from other union members, AED or no AED. For years, the US has tried to get the union to adopt AED, but certain countries have resisted, seeing it only as a prerogative of the US. There’s currently no indication that this will change any time soon.

In 2017, only about 36 percent of the nearly 500 million packages sent by USPS included AED. The USPS and CBP have teamed up to try to monitor and screen that sliver in USPS’ five International Service Centers, which sort through incoming packages. But the effort has not gone well. The team’s effort “suffered from a lack of forethought and cooperation, conflicting missions, and interagency personality conflicts,” according to the Senate’s report.

The USPS, focused on moving massive amounts of mail, often failed to catch AED-containing packages that the CBP wanted to inspect. The CBP, on the other hand, asserted that it should be able to get every package it wants to review.

Among the Senate subcommittee’s recommendations to stop the illegal drug shipments is for the postal service and customs to improve their relationship. The subcommittee also recommends to push for an international requirement for AED and coordinate more with the Chinese government.

On a positive note, in an interview with Reuters, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said that working to prevent drug possession and sales was a “bright spot” in China-US relations.