While deaths within Los Angeles County linked to fentanyl are declining, the synthetic opioid is still a leading cause of death among 18 to 40-year-olds, according to county officials.

Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman and Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna led a Tuesday news conference to warn of the "silent assassin in the community," referring to fentanyl, ahead of the Halloween holiday.

Hochman said that drug dealers in the past have used candy to transport and disguise fentanyl, which is "killing at least eight people in this county every single day. It kills more unhoused people than anything else out there," he said.

In 2024, LA County recorded 2,438 drug overdose deaths, marking a 22% countywide decline from the 3,137 deaths in 2023.

"The collaboration of law enf

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