“That heroin, that meth, that coke, that oxy you think you are taking? Well, it just might have fentanyl in it, and it just might be the last thing you ever do,” U.S. Attorney Robert Brewer said in a statement. “I cannot be more clear than this: Fentanyl may be the costliest drug you ever do, because you may pay with your life, and you won’t even know you took it.”

Brewer said border seizures, prosecutions and overdoses are on pace to hit all-time highs in San Diego County by the end of 2019. The Medical Examiner’s Office has confirmed 50 fentanyl-related overdose deaths so far this year, plus another 28 suspected but yet-to-be confirmed cases.

If the trend continues, the death toll could potentially reach 130, which would amount to a 47 percent increase over last year’s total of 90 deaths. The victims are overwhelmingly male, with the average age about 36.

“Just when we think it can’t get any worse, the latest numbers prove us wrong,” Brewer said. “I am alarmed by the dramatic surge in trafficking activity and deaths, particularly of young people. San Diego is the fentanyl gateway to the rest of the country, and we are working hard to close that gate with interdiction, prosecution and education.”

Federal authorities have confiscated 1,175 pounds of illicit fentanyl – more than half a ton -- at or near the international border so far this year. In addition, there has been a record number of seizures involving counterfeit blue pills labeled M-30 that contain fentanyl. The pills sell on the street for $9 to $30 each and are appearing around the country.