Fredericton has seen more than 160 overdoses this year, up from 54 in 2023

Fredericton police say overdoses have tripled since 2023.

Nine people have died from overdoses in Fredericton so far this year, more than triple the amount from two years ago.

Fredericton Police Force Chief Gary Forward, at a presentation for the public safety committee on Thursday, said there were three fatal overdoses in 2023 and eight in 2024.

Forward also said police have responded to 162 overdoses in the region this year, a stark increase from 97 in 2024 and 54 in 2023.

Along with the spike in overdoses, police have seen a sharp rise in the types of drugs being used in the city. So far this year, officers have seized 2.9 kilograms of methamphetamine, more than double the amount of meth seized in the region in the previous year (1.2 kilograms).

Forward noted an increase in fentanyl seizures (834 grams in 2025 compared to 660 grams in 2024) and a marked decline in cocaine (813 grams in 2025 compared to 1,378 grams in 2024).

“For the first time, the seizures of fentanyl have surpassed cocaine, suggesting a change in the market,” said Forward, who also noted that carfentanil is also becoming a big concern.

“Carfentanil is generally used as an additive into things like cocaine or even fentanyl. We have a lot of users that think that they’re using one particular product or drug and they don’t know what’s in the mixture. This is, of course, resulting in overdoses and increasing the number of times that police, and other public safety teams have to respond to.”

The amount of meth pills seized has also increased (238 in 2025 compared to 15 in 2024) while crack has dramatically fallen (7.84 grams in 2025 compared to 45.83 grams in 2024).

Coun. Eric Megarity said Ottawa needs to help solve these drug issues.

“It’s a serious problem and we’ve been crying for help and we’ve got to stop that flow of that stuff, and you have to get tougher on those individuals,” Megarity said. “We have to have the national government toughen laws and the province toughen those laws so we can see little relief on what we do here.”

Forward highlighted multiple police drug busts this year, including one from Oct. 21 that saw officers seize nearly half a kilogram of fentanyl and 230 meth pills that, among other drugs, had a street value of $94,000.

“These are amounts of seizures we have not previously seen and we are certainly seeing more of it across the province,” he said.

-With files from CTV News Atlantic’s Avery MacRae

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