Two Texas families are speaking out after losing their sons to a dangerous synthetic opioid up to 43 times more potent than fentanyl and, in some cases, resistant to the overdose-reversal drug Narcan, as reported by The New York Post.
The drug, known as nitazene, has been linked to multiple deaths in the United States and is now drawing urgent warnings from grieving parents and law enforcement officials.
On January 26, 2024, 22-year-old Lucci Reyes-McCallister died near Houston after taking what he believed was a Xanax pill.
EXCLUSIVE: A pair of Texas friends died less than three months apart after ingesting pills laced with a dangerous new synthetic opioid, and now their mothers are begging US officials to sound the alarm on the little-known drug up to 43 times more lethal than fentanyl.
The young… pic.twitter.com/KijXmsPCSQ
— Jennie Taer ️ (@JennieSTaer) August 11, 2025
According to the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences, the pill was laced with N-Pyrrolidino Protonitazene, a nitazene variant 25 times more lethal than fentanyl. His mother, Grey McCallister, said she had never heard of the drug until her son’s death.
“It took them seven rounds of Narcan to try to revive him,” she told The Post. Lucci did not survive.
Less than three months later, on April 10, Lucci’s friend, 21-year-old Hunter Clement, also died after taking a pill disguised as a Percocet that contained the same nitazene variant.
Hunter’s mother, Ruthi Clement, said she had read about nitazenes weeks after her son’s death and suspected it was the cause. Toxicology results later confirmed it.
Nitazenes were first developed more than 60 years ago as a potential alternative to morphine but were never approved for medical use due to the high overdose risk.
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) reports the synthetic opioids are being produced in clandestine Chinese laboratories and may be entering the U.S. through Mexican drug cartels.
Former acting DEA Administrator Derek Maltz described the influx as part of “China’s ongoing attack against America,” noting that the drugs are emerging even as fentanyl remains a major threat.
Customs officers at New York’s JFK Airport are now seizing nitazenes “at least a few times a week,” with quantities ranging from grams to over a pound, according to Andrew Renna, Assistant Port Director for Cargo Operations.
In Houston and Harris County, medical examiners have documented at least four nitazene-related overdose deaths.
Traditional toxicology tests do not detect nitazenes unless specifically requested, and local officials say screenings are ordered only when suspected use is present and no other toxicology explains the death.
Ruthi Clement recalled finding her son face down in bed, his body cold and discolored. She attempted chest compressions and administered two doses of Narcan, but it was not enough.
“Sometimes I get mad because I couldn’t save my own son, but I do want to save other people, even if it’s just one person in honor of him.”
Grey McCallister has since dedicated herself to raising awareness, warning that many users believe counterfeit pills are safe. “They could think something is clean or rather safe when it’s actually pressed for something that’s 20 to 40 times stronger, more deadly than fentanyl,” she said.
The Houston field office for the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) is putting out a serious and stern warning about a synthetic drug called Nitazene, saying it’s 25% more potent than fentanyl and leading to seizures and overdoses in teens and adults. https://t.co/SL4PHBB4qJ pic.twitter.com/7DlpodSjuv
— FOX26Houston (@FOX26Houston) May 29, 2025
Maltz has urged federal agencies to create education campaigns using social media influencers, athletes, and other public figures to reach young Americans. “You have to educate these kids. That’s where they are, they’re not watching the news,” he said.
It is easy to be heartless about these people losing their lives due to illegal drugs. But the people who sell and make these drugs should be severely punished. Parents should know who their kids hang around and be aware of things like this being sold to kids. This scourge is affecting people at all income levels and ethnic groups. We all don’t need to be arrogant and prideful about someone dying from drugs. It can happen to any of us.
Another big pharma death.
Don’t take any pills and this won’t happen.
Their is no such thing as a drug deficiency.
Sorry, the Khazarian U.S. government is too busy fighting wars for greed and power, and the citizens no longer are needed as they have UAV’s to do the fighting, your children’s futures don’t matter to the rich oligarchs running the world into the ground, no time for YOU!
I really wish I could get upset at the deaths due to these awful drugs but, I can’t cause these deaths are the result of doing something stupid. There is ample information out there that there’s no reason why someone would think they’d be immune form the consequences of their actions.
Bingo.. I agree. Popping street pills is as insane as it gets. You’re depending on a felon peddling drugs to tell you what it is your ingesting..
My comment too.
Maybe if the families had been more involved with their children and supervised better, their kids would be alive.
One reason the drug problem is so bad is because we don’t punish the illegal drug users, just the sellers and smugglers.
A couple fewer illegal drug users is not something I cry over.