Aliquippa police officer overdoses on fentanyl while destroying drugs in evidence room

An Aliquippa police officer overdosed while handling narcotics from the department's evidence room, the Beaver County district attorney said. The officer collapsed in a patrol car and it took Narcan and CPR to save him. 

There are questions about whether that officer followed proper protocol in handling those drugs. But right now, the Beaver County district attorney says it appears no crime was committed, and no charges have been filed.

The officer told KDKA he doesn't even remember collapsing. He says after helping destroy narcotics inside the evidence room at the Aliquippa Police Department, he changed his clothes, got into a patrol car with his partner, and about 20 minutes later, everything went black.

The officer involved is the department's evidence custodian, responsible for handling and destroying old narcotics stored inside the evidence room. Beaver County District Attorney Nate Bible says the officer was wearing gloves, but investigators believe he somehow still came into contact with fentanyl.

After speculation, KDKA's Shelley Bortz asked the officer if he intentionally took the drugs, and he said no. 

"Ultimately, when we found out who the officer was, there wasn't any of us that thought this guy has a drug problem," Bible said. "I think this situation shows that such a very, very small amount can be near fatal."

The officer says he was riding in the passenger seat of the patrol car when he suddenly lost consciousness. His partner immediately suspected an overdose, administering Narcan twice before paramedics arrived.

The officer says he woke up hours later in the hospital with no memory of what happened. It wasn't until he told doctors he had been destroying narcotics earlier in the day that everything started to make sense.

"This is just a very, very unfortunate accident and thank God that this officer didn't lose his life," Bible said. 

Now in the wake of this nearly deadly incident, the department says it's taking a hard look at its safety procedures. Bible says one immediate change will require officers to wear masks anytime they handle narcotics as investigators work to determine exactly how this exposure happened. 

However, as questions and speculation continue online, the Aliquippa police chief posted a statement to Facebook, saying in part, "What I can tell the community is this: this department holds its officers to a professional standard, and any matter that calls that standard into question is reviewed thoroughly and handled through the proper administrative and legal channels."

Bible says this incident should serve as a wake-up call for other departments. 

"From any type of tragedy, there's always lessons to be learned and maybe this is a good time for everybody to revisit their policies and to make sure they're putting a little more safeguards in place," Bible said.

The officer is doing fine and is back on the job. He says he feels incredibly lucky to be alive.