Illegal drug ads discovered in online classified section of Interior B.C. news sites
The ads for MDMA and other drugs have since been removed
Advertisements for illicit drugs were posted in the online classified sections of well-known southern Interior newspapers The Similkameen Spotlight and Kelowna Capital News.
One of the posted entries advertised online sales of pure MDMA, a psychoactive recreational drug also known as ecstasy, for $10. The same ad also offered furanyl-fentanyl for sale, a drug the World Health Organization describes as a derivative of the opioid, fentanyl.
The newspapers, owned by Black Press Media, removed the advertisements within minutes of being contacted by CBC.
Staff at the papers did not seem to be aware these ads were on company websites.
Andrew Hotola, the editorial director for Black Press, explained to CBC the ads were placed in the classified section of the newspapers through their free posting feature.
Despite Black Press's best efforts to stop ads with this type of content, the website filters did not pick them up.
Hotola added that Black Press has adjusted its filters to catch ads with this kind of content in the future, and that it did not make any money from them.
Phone calls to the website's listed number led to an automated message.
Caution against online drugs
Kelowna RCMP would not confirm if they are investigating the matter.
They said they have engaged in investigations in the past involving the dark web.
"It is not as common to encounter an individual or individuals engaged in criminal behaviour, such as drug trafficking on open source internet sites," Cpl. Jesse O'Donaghey told CBC in an email.
Andy Watson with the B.C. Coroners Service cautions people not to buy drugs from unknown sources.
"Without knowing the source of your supply and without knowing if these supplies are safe, regulated, or licensed, naturally we're concerned about the safety of what's being sold," Watson told Daybreak South's David French.
"The purchase of any drugs in B.C. should come from a licensed prescriber and not from somebody, including an online source, that could be unregulated," he said.
In 2018, there were 1,489 suspected illicit drug overdose deaths across the province.
with files from David French, Brady Strachan and Daybreak South