Finding the owner of an envelope containing fentanyl that sickened a stylist at a Dunwoody hair salon will be “difficult,” police officials said.
On June 20, a large envelope with Salon Colour’s address, 5482 Chamblee Dunwoody Road, which also listed it as the sender, was opened by a male employee, who became overwhelmed after making contact with a white powder contained inside it.
Police called to the scene conducted a field test, which confirmed that the substance was fentanyl, Dunwoody Sgt. Michael Cheek said. It has been sent to the state crime lab for official confirmation.
The victim was transported to a local hospital, but his condition is not known. Rough Draft’s calls to Salon Colour were not returned prior to publication time.
Cheek said finding the sender of the dangerous missive won’t be as easy as it sounds.
“Right now, we are not even sure how it was sent – either by mail, FedEx or another carrier,” he said. “It had been there (at the salon) for up to two weeks, so tracing it will be difficult.”
In addition, police will not be able to lift prints or do other tests on the envelope because of the nature of its contents.
“Because fentanyl is such a dangerous and deadly substance, we are not going to be messing with it (the letter) any further,” Cheek said.
Cheek said even though there was a small amount of powder in the envelope, it’s easy to become sickened with the slightest contact.
Fentanyl is a potent synthetic opioid drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use for pain relief and anesthetic. It is approximately 100 times more potent than morphine and 50 times more potent than heroin. Ingesting even a small quantity can cause acute distress.
This is a developing story. Stay tuned for updates.
