50 Kilos of a Fentanyl Precursor Chemical Seized in Worcester County

BOSTON – The DEA New England Field Division and the United States Attorney’s Office announced today that 50 kilograms of a fentanyl precursor chemical, with a street value of over $570 million, was seized at a storage facility in Northborough, Mass., on May 25, 2017.

Federal agents, assisted by members of the Worcester, Northborough and Westborough Police Departments, seized 50 kilos of what is believed to be N-Phenethyl-4-piperidinone (NPP), which is commonly used for the illicit manufacture of fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid that is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine.

If converted, 50 kilograms of NPP would theoretically yield up to 19 million fentanyl tablets, with an estimated street value of over $570 million.

It is believed that this represents the DEA’s largest seizure of a fentanyl precursor in the New England Region in recent years. This matter was overseen by the United States Attorney’s Office and conducted by the DEA’s New England Field Division’s Worcester Tactical Diversion Squad with assistance from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Worcester, Northborough and Westborough Police Departments.

No further information regarding the seizure is available at this time.

Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb; Michael J. Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division; and Shelly Binkowski, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Boston Field Division made the announcement today. The matter is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Greg A. Friedholm of Weinreb’s Worcester Branch Office.