OXFORD – Lafayette County narcotics investigators are calling on Mississippi lawmakers to address synthetic kratom-related products as authorities continue investigating the deaths of two University of Mississippi students.
In a community update, the Lafayette County Metro Narcotics Unit said the two deaths are being investigated separately and that authorities are awaiting official autopsy and toxicology findings from the Mississippi State Medical Examiner’s Office.
Investigators said packaging associated with kratom-related products was discovered at both locations during the early stages of the investigations. That discovery prompted law enforcement to issue a public safety warning out of what officials described as an abundance of caution.
Authorities emphasized that the warning did not mean kratom or any other specific substance had been determined to have caused either death.
“Until those results are received and evaluated, we will not speculate about what substances, if any, contributed to these deaths,” the agency said.
As the investigations continued, information led agents with the Lafayette County Metro Narcotics Unit to a retail business in Oxford.
Agents conducted a controlled purchase of a product marketed as SMAX that was believed to contain kratom-related substances, according to the agency. Investigators said they obtained additional information during the transaction suggesting illegal drug activity at the business.
Agents then obtained and executed a search warrant at Puffs Vape, Tobacco and Beer Store on Heritage Drive.
During the search, authorities said they recovered more than 500 units of products believed to contain kratom-related substances, along with THC products and other suspected controlled substances.
Two people were arrested and each charged with three counts of possession of Schedule I controlled substances with intent to distribute. Both later appeared before a Lafayette County Justice Court judge and received bonds of $100,000 each.
The narcotics unit said investigators are continuing to examine evidence from both death investigations and the retail investigation. That includes determining the chemical composition of products, identifying possible sources of distribution and determining whether there is any connection between the investigations.
Authorities are also working with federal law enforcement partners to determine whether the evidence supports additional investigations or criminal charges under federal law.
The agency said the deaths have brought renewed attention to the distinction between traditional botanical kratom and manufactured, concentrated or chemically altered kratom-related products.
According to the statement, federal authorities on Aug. 26 temporarily placed three synthetic opioid compounds — mitragynine pseudoindoxyl, MGM-15 and MGM-16 — into Schedule I of the federal Controlled Substances Act. The agency noted that the federal action targeted those manufactured compounds and did not impose a general Schedule I classification on traditional botanical kratom.
Lafayette County investigators are now urging the Mississippi Legislature to examine whether state laws adequately address emerging synthetic substances.
The agency called for legislative hearings, a review of Mississippi’s controlled substance laws and examination of how manufacturers, distributors and retailers can be held accountable when products put lives at risk.
“Families deserve answers. Communities deserve protection. Law enforcement deserves clear, enforceable laws that keep pace with emerging drug threats,” the agency said.
Officials said Oxford and Lafayette County have taken steps for years to address the local availability of kratom products through ordinances, education, compliance efforts and criminal enforcement.
The agency said those efforts will continue while investigators work to determine what happened in the two students’ deaths.
“Above all, we remain mindful of the two families at the center of this tragedy,” the statement said. “They deserve answers supported by evidence, and our community deserves a public safety response guided by facts, compassion and the law.”
The investigations remain active.
