Logan Jamieson sought help before death from overdose, friend says

A friend of Logan Jamieson says the man was trying to get help for addictions before he died of an apparent drug overdose, possibly related to fake OxyContin.

Police in Saskatoon were still investigating the death of the 19-year-old man as friends and family gathered for a funeral service Wednesday.

Officially, police have not released the names of two Saskatoon men they believe died of overdoses. However, family and friends have confirmed that Jamieson's recent death is the subject of a probe by police and the coroner's office. The death of the second man, who died a day after Jamieson, is also being probed for possible links to counterfeit drugs.

Sabra Letourneau, one of Jamieson's friends, spoke about how he had turned to her for help as she had experience overcoming addictions.

"He always had that inner demon and I could relate with him," she said. "It's just [that] time ran out, you know."

She said he spoke to her just days before he died and that she was hoping to do something for him.

"He came to me with his problems and I was going to bring them to a meeting on Saturday," she said. "I knew that he wanted to change."

While police have not released additional details about the case, experts have noted that a drug called fentanyl has been used to make a street version of OxyContin. Taken unwittingly, fentanyl — a powerful pain killer 100 times more potent than morphine — is notorious for causing overdoses.

Jamieson's brother-in-law, Xander Nichol, said Wednesday that he believes people need to speak out about drug issues even if it is difficult for families.

"You have to talk about the elephant in the room," Nichol said. "If you have a suspicion that someone in your family is abusing prescription drugs, or non-prescription drugs, you have to do something about it."

Nichol also noted how the issue of deadly counterfeit drugs has been around for some time.

"People are thinking that the problem comes now that there's just a dirty batch out there," he said. "The problem has been here the whole time. It has just been brought to the media's attention now because ... people are dying."

Letourneau added that there is a strong stigma associated with drug users which only makes it more difficult to face the problem.

"Addicts are ... shunned," she said. "Nobody wants to talk about their addiction because they're ashamed of it and society shuns them, and it is a disease."

Letourneau stressed that there are programs to help people with addictions.

"Get help," she added. "Keep trying. Don't give up."