Houston officer sickened during investigation was not exposed to fentanyl, police say

HOUSTON – A Houston police officer who fell ill Wednesday during a narcotics investigation was not exposed to fentanyl, according to authorities.

According to a tweet from the Houston Police Department on Thursday, lab tests conducted on pills the officer found in a southwest Houston hotel room showed they contained methamphetamine and THC, a drug found in cannabis.

Investigators said the officer had responded to the Crowne Plaza hotel on Southwest Freeway after reports of a drunken guest who refused to leave. By the time the officer arrived, the man had left, investigators said. The officer found a plastic baggie of pills during a search of the man’s room, investigators said.

The officer later became ill and administered a dose of naloxone to himself, police said. When his condition did not improve, another officer administered a second dose, police said.

Naloxone is a drug used to counteract the effects of opioids.

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The officer was hospitalized and later released.

Police said that officers are trained to administer naloxone whenever they experience similar symptoms.