US group urges feds to investigate Snapchat over fentanyl sales

This 2019 photo provided by Amy Neville shows her son Alex Neville of Orange County, California, who died in June of 2020 at the age of 14 after taking a fake prescription pill he purchased from a dealer he encountered on the social-media app Snapchat. — Amy Neville via AP

WASHINGTON: As the US deals with its deadliest overdose crisis to date, a national crime-prevention group is calling on the Justice Department to clamp down on social media’s role in the spread of fentanyl, the drug largely driving a troubling spike in overdose deaths among teenagers.

The National Crime Prevention Council sent a letter on Dec 21 to Attorney General Merrick Garland, calling for an investigation. The group known for ads featuring McGruff the Crime Dog is especially concerned about the sale of fake pills laced with fentanyl on Snapchat, a popular platform among teens.