A man was arrested Thursday after police found him in possession of rainbow fentanyl, methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia near Oregon City High School.
Just before 6:30 p.m., officers were called out to a welfare check of a man, later identified as 25-year-old Taylor Thomas, inside a vehicle near Meyers Road and High School Avenue.
During the welfare check, police said an officer saw illegal drugs, drug paraphernalia and packaging material inside Thomas’ vehicle. Oregon City K-9 officer Grendel Von Schafer Weg checked the vehicle and alerted his handler to the odor of narcotics.
Police said a full search of the vehicle led to the seizure of 20 rainbow fentanyl M30 pills, about 0.4 ounces of methamphetamine, an unspecified amount of fentanyl powder, scale and packaging material
Thomas was arrested and booked into the Clackamas County jail for attempted distribution of a controlled substance-meth within 1,000 feet of a school and attempted manufacture of a controlled substance/distribution of a controlled substance within 1,000 feet of a school.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid 80 to 100 times more powerful than morphine and 30 to 50 times more powerful than heroin. A three-milligram dose of fentanyl — which amounts to just a few grains of the substance — is enough to kill an average adult male.
Rainbow fentanyl, which began appearing in several forms in cities across the country last year, is a brightly colored version of the highly toxic synthetic opioid.
Versions seized in the Portland area resemble thick pieces of brightly colored sidewalk chalk or small multi-colored pills sometimes referred to as “Skittles.”
If you or someone you know encounter any version of fentanyl, please refrain from handling it and call 9-1-1 immediately. If you know someone who is selling drugs in Oregon City, please email OCPDSIT@orcity.org or call 503-905-3505.
If you are struggling with substance use disorder, help is available. Contact Lines for Life by phone at 1-800-923-4357 or online at linesforlife.org/get-help-now.