Tapentadol is a painkiller that belongs to a stronger group of opioids, which lies between the more common drug Tramadol and Morphine.
Thomas Palmgren, head of the police detention group responsible for drug offenses, says in an interview with VK:
- What we have come up with and can say at present is that we have identified a preparation called Tapentadol. It is a drug-rated opioid. Tapentadol is very similar in appearance to Tramadol and has also been marketed on the street as Tramadol. Our theory is that you may have mixed this up and have believed that it is Tramadol you have taken, but that it was instead Tapentadol.
In early November, nine people in Vilhelmina and Umeå were taken to hospital after overdosing on an unknown drug, two of whom died.
Police suspected a connection early on as the preparation was unknown and the overdoses were close to each other at the time.
SVT is looking for Thomas Palmgren for further information.