A convicted drug supplier connected to fatal overdoses involving powerful synthetic opioids has admitted to possessing and creating more than 5,000 explicit images of children, exposing what investigators described as a disturbing double life.

The National Crime Agency (NCA) said 45-year-old Polish national Robert Poleszak pleaded guilty to a series of serious offences, including drug trafficking and child exploitation crimes, during a hearing at Reading Crown Court.

Authorities said his activities connected two major areas of criminality, namely the supply of deadly nitazene drugs and the production of Category Achild sexual abuse material.

Poleszak had already admitted supplying cocaine and nitazenes, a class of synthetic opioids that experts say are significantly more potent than traditional opioids.

The NCA stated that some nitazenes can be around 1,000 times stronger than morphine, making them among the most dangerous substances circulating on illicit drug markets.

Investigators said Poleszak sold counterfeit Oxycodone tablets through dark web marketplaces. Customers believed they were purchasing prescription painkillers, but the pills contained Isotonitazene, a highly potent synthetic opioid.

Authorities identified over 100 sales of Oxycodone linked to Poleszak's operation. Reviews left by buyers reportedly indicated multiple overdoses and hospitalisations connected to the products, per theNational Crime Agency UK.

Nitazenes have become an increasing concern for law enforcement and health officials in several countries. Reports have linked the substances to hundreds of deaths in Britain and thousands worldwide as criminal networks continue the drugs' distribution through online marketplaces and postal services.

The NCA connected Poleszak's drug operation to at least two suspected overdose deaths.

In one of the cases, a drug user in Cornwall died in February 2025 after allegedly obtaining Isotonitazene pills through a local dealer supplied by Poleszak, who also goes by the alias Krzysztof Wozniak.

Source: International Business Times UK