Canada appoints former Mountie as fentanyl czar to combat production of the dangerous opioid

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Canada on Tuesday named a former deputy commissioner with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police as the country’s fentanyl czar, hoping to show the U.S. it is working to prevent production and distribution of the synthetic opioid.

During his more than 20 years in the RCMP, Kevin Brosseau served as a deputy commissioner and the senior Mountie in the province of Manitoba. More recently, he was deputy national security and intelligence adviser to the prime minister.

“Fentanyl is a lethal drug that must be eradicated from our communities,” Prime Minster Justin Trudeau said in a statement Tuesday. “The appointment of Kevin Brosseau as Fentanyl Czar will accelerate Canada’s efforts to detect, disrupt, and dismantle the fentanyl trade, in partnership with the United States.”

President Donald Trump recently threatened to impose steep tariffs on all goods from Canada, citing the southbound flow of migrants and drugs, including fentanyl.

Trump agreed to a monthlong pause on the tariffs while the U.S. assesses whether Canada’s recent actions satisfy his demands.

The amount of fentanyl made in Canada and smuggled into the U.S. is much smaller than that from Mexico. U.S. customs agents seized 43 pounds (19.5 kilograms) of fentanyl at the Canadian border during the last fiscal year, compared with 21,100 pounds (9,570 kilograms) at the Mexican border.