2,000 liters of chemicals for making fentanyl found in Breda warehouse

Approximately 2,000 liters of chemicals likely used to manufacture the drug fentanyl were found stashed in a warehouse in Breda on Thursday. The chemicals were kept in multiple 200-liter drums and 25-liter jerry cans.

No arrests were made immediately after the find. The police were investigating how the chemicals wound up in the warehouse, where they originated, and if they were going to be transported elsewhere as part of a criminal scheme.

"The police received a tip yesterday at the end of the morning about a suspicious situation in the warehouse," authorities said in a statement. "After consultation between specialists from the police and the [Netherlands Forensic Institute], it was determined that this is probably the raw materials for the manufacture of fentanyl, a dangerous hard drug whose use can be fatal in small quantities."

In the Netherlands, fentanyl is considered a drug that carries extreme health risks and can be very harmful. As such, the highly addictive prescription painkiller is on List I of the Opium Act.

"Several hundred empty 25-liter jerry cans and materials for processing the chemicals were also found."

One of the largest fentanyl busts in the Netherlands happened earlier this year, when a batch of 1.3 kilograms of the processed drug was found in Eindhoven in February.