Waterford Police Officer Hospitalized After Contact with Fentanyl​ During Search

WATERFORD, CT - A Waterford police officer was briefly hospitalized Monday after being exposed to fentanyl during a search.

Police said an officer stopped the vehicle of Charlestown, Rhode Island, native Nicholas Constantine's vehicle on Route 85 and arrested him for heroin possession, according to a release. While searching the car, the unidentified officer was exposed to the fentanyl the heroin was cut with.

As the officer subsequently dealt with the suspect, he began feeling light headed and sick with an elevated heart rate. The officer was quickly transported to the hospital in order to prevent an overdose.

The officer was released after a period of testing and observation and was able to report back to work Tuesday. The evidence was placed in a vented evidence locker and stored securely to ensure other officers did not make contact with it.

Constantine was charged with possession of a controlled substance/narcotics and drug paraphernalia, unauthorized manufacture/sale of drugs and failure to drive in the proper lane on a multiple-lane highway.

Images via Waterford police.