A massive drug overdose believed to have killed four people at a Melbourne home could be linked to a deadly new form of cocaine flooding the market.
Michael Hodgkinson, 32, was one of four people discovered in the lounge of a unit in the northern suburb of Broadmeadows last week.
Abdul El Sayed, 17, was also killed, along with an as-yet-unidentified 37-year-old man and a 42-year-old woman inside the Bicknell Court home.
On Tuesday, Victoria’s Department of Health issued a drug alert for cocaine laced with protonitazene, a new synthetic opioid.
“Serious damage has recently occurred in Melbourne associated with a white powder sold as cocaine containing protonitazene,” the warning states.
‘The product appears to produce loss of consciousness, respiratory depression and potentially life-threatening hypoxia (insufficient oxygen for normal functioning).’
A Victoria Police spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia that detectives are continuing to investigate the Broadmeadows tragedy and forensic results are not expected for several weeks.
Last week, police were seen entering the property with the aid of oxygen tanks amid fears the four may have been poisoned with some form of gas.
A massive drug overdose believed to have killed four people at a house in Melbourne’s Broadmeadows could be linked to a deadly new form of cocaine flooding the market
Michael Hodgkinson was among four people who died in a suspected overdose in Broadmeadows last week.
Abdul El Sayed, 17, (right), leaves behind a partner and an 18-month-old daughter
Carbon monoxide poisoning was quickly ruled out because a dog in the home survived.
Abdul’s uncle, Cory Lewis, also told the Daily Mail Australia that he believed his nephew had died from some kind of drug overdose.
Mr Lewis was the first to arrive at the gruesome scene and reported the incident to the police.
“I walked right in and didn’t smell anything,” Cory said.
The health department warned that the new type of cocaine could produces strong effects in very small amounts.
‘Protonitazene has a potency of more than 100 times ‘The one about heroin,’ the warning said.
‘Cocaine produces stimulant effects, while protonitazene produces sedative effects and can cause opioid overdose.
‘Using protonitazene with depressants such as alcohol, GHB, or depressant medications (such as Xanax or Valium) increases the risk of overdose.’
He also stated that respiratory depression also appears more quickly with the new synthetic opioids.
Taking protonitazene with alcohol or other prescription medications such as Xanax or Valium may also increase the risk of overdose.
Health officials have previously linked protonitazene to overdoses in Victoria and other states, including a fatality in South Australia.
Authorities warned that it was mixed with other drugs, making it difficult to identify its origin.
Last week, Victoria Police Detective Inspector Dean Thomas said police were investigating the possibility the Broadmeadows deaths were linked to an overdose.
“It’s unusual to find four people dead in one property, possibly from a drug overdose, but we have to keep an open mind and until we confirm that’s the case, it could be anything,” Detective Inspector Thomas said.
“I can’t say definitively whether (fentanyl) is involved,” he added.
Police used oxygen tanks to enter the Broadmeadows property last week.
Abdul El Sayed is pictured with his mother Jessica Lewis in happier times
Police are treating the deaths as non-suspicious at this stage of the investigation, but are believed to be very interested in where the deceased obtained the drugs they suspect killed them.
“We’re keeping an open mind as to what the cause of death is at this stage,” Thomas said.
The deaths coincided with an announcement by the Victorian government that it would introduce drug testing, following 46 overdose deaths due to new synthetic opioids since 2022.
The initiative will involve the establishment of a mobile drug-checking service that will attend up to 10 music festivals, with a fixed site expected to open in an inner Melbourne area next year.
Both mobile and landline services will be able to analyse the composition of most pills, capsules, powders, crystals and liquids to identify lethal substances, including synthetic drugs.