The OPP is on a mission to end opioid-related overdose deaths in the province.
In last three years, the force says it has laid charges for manslaughter and criminal negligence in connection with 13 alleged overdose fatalities. Eight of those happened just this year, police say.
Police say the ages of the victims range from just three-years-old to 42.
"People are dying from opioid overdoses every day," says OPP Interim Deputy Paul Beesley. "We are continuing to hold these people who are knowingly trafficking harmful substances, such as fentanyl, in our communities accountable for these deaths."
The OPP says there is no excuse for selling drugs such as fentanyl with all the knowledge that exists of its deadly potential.
According to provincial police, opioid-related overdoses have increased by 157 percent since 2016. They said 73 percent of those involved fentanyl.
Statistics Canada suggests that 93 percent of opioid-related overdose fatalities are accidental.
- With files from The Canadian Press
