Pubdate: Fri, 28 Jul 2000
Source: Sault Star, The (CN ON)
Copyright: 2000 The Sault Star
Contact:  145 Old Garden River Road, Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. P6A 5M5
Website: http://www.saultstar.com/
Authors: Frank Dobrovnik And Elaine Della-Mattia

TENTATIVE LINK BETWEEN DRUG WARNING, ODS

A public alert about dangerous and even fatal street drugs available in 
Sault Ste. Marie has been tentatively linked to what appear to be heroin 
and intravenous morphine overdoses dating back up to four months. The local 
coroner's office took the unusual step Wednesday of issuing a warning of 
the potential risk involved with the use of current street drugs that ``may 
be more dangerous than their users believe.''

Sault coroner Dr. Douglas Brooks said the warning, which was later narrowed 
down to heroin and IV morphine, is a result of preliminary laboratory 
reports from a number of recent deaths.

Brooks would not say how many coroner's investigations currently under way 
are believed linked to drugs but said that there have been ``more 
fatalities of late'' of such a nature in the city.

"Basically it's from some of the detective work that's been done and the 
history of some of the people involved in the investigations. As well, we 
have some initial laboratory reports that point in that direction," Brooks 
said Thursday.

The first of the "many ongoing investigations" into these deaths dates back 
"three or four months," he said, adding that the length of time between the 
first death and the public warning is partly a result of the length of time 
to receive the results of toxicology tests, which determine the presence of 
drugs in the system.

Two to three months is the minimum for "quantitative results," he said.

It is too early to determine whether Martin Arcangeletti, the Sault Ste. 
Marie man whose body was found in his truck on Saturday, died as a result 
of bad heroin or morphine, he said.

"There's a possibility but it's not for certain. I don't have any 
toxicology results back on him at all," he said.

Shortly before 5 p.m. on Saturday, the Sault Ste. Marie Police Service 
received a call about a 1999 black Ford truck in the parking lot adjacent 
to the Sports Center Bar & Grill on Wellington Street West.

Arcangeletti's body was discovered in the passenger seat.

An autopsy Sunday failed to determine how the 37-year-old man died.

City police Insp. Terry Noble said that the police department cannot 
release any more information because the matter is an ongoing coroner's 
investigation.

"We spoke about this (Thursday) and we can't release any information at 
this time," he said.

Noble said that the coroner has put out a press release warning the public 
to beware of the drugs "and we can't release anything else."

He would not say whether police are investigating the matter or where it's 
believed the drugs originated.

Sgt. Lee Campbell said the initial warning by Brooks was followed up with a 
more detailed press release, identifying heroin and intravenous morphine as 
the fatal street drug in question.

"It's a coroner's investigation and he dictates what information goes out," 
Campbell said.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jo-D