My cousin died from a well-liked spring break hazard. I created an merchandise teenagers should take so it will not occur to them

As college students gear up for spring break, concerns about fentanyl contamination are growing. 

Ahmad Hussain, CEO of Defense Diagnostics Inc., has turned his personal tragedy into a mission, developing Defent, a portable fentanyl detection device designed to prevent accidental poisonings.

His journey began with the loss of his 19-year-old cousin to fentanyl poisoning. 

‘He wasn’t a stereotypical drug user — just experimenting like many young adults do. He got unlucky,’ Ahmad shared in an exclusive interview with the DailyMail.com. 

Seeing the devastation firsthand pushed him to create an accessible, user-friendly preventative tool.

Defent, priced at $10, is designed for use in any environment — from beaches to nightclubs. 

Resembling a vape or lighter, it eliminates the need for precise measurements or additional equipment, making it more reliable than traditional test strips.

‘Our goal was to make something easy to use, even for someone under the influence,’ Ahmad explained. 

The team spent two and a half years and 57 prototypes perfecting the design, learning from user testing to refine its functionality.

Since launching, Defent has seen exponential growth, doubling sales each month. 

Now available on Amazon, the company’s website and in more than 100 retail stores— including smoke shops, some 7-Elevens and gas stations — the product is reaching a wide audience.

The response has been overwhelming. ‘We’ve received countless emails and private messages from people saying, “I wish this was around earlier — maybe my son would still be here, or my brother, or my boyfriend”.’

Defent also includes an anonymous reporting tool, allowing users to scan a QR code to report contaminated substances. 

‘Since December, we’ve had 60 reports of fentanyl-laced substances across various cities,’ he revealed, fostering a network of community awareness.

Hussain stressed that fentanyl deaths are often poisonings, not overdoses, as many victims unknowingly consume the drug. 

Recognizing the limitations of Narcan — a reactionary tool — he wanted to create a preventative solution.

Older test strips often gave false positives, eroding trust in testing. 

‘For example, MDMA would trigger a false result, making users skeptical about the entire process. That’s why adoption of preventative measures was low,’ Ahmad explained. 

Defent solves this problem with more accurate detection.

Fentanyl is cheap, potent, and addictive, making it attractive for dealers looking to maximize profits. Many counterfeit pills—disguised as OxyContin, Xanax, or Adderall—contain fentanyl, posing a fatal risk to unsuspecting users.

Hussain’s cousin, for instance, had used real OxyContin in the past. But as prescription crackdowns increased, counterfeit pills laced with fentanyl flooded the market, leading to his death. 

‘He didn’t have a fentanyl tolerance—so it killed him,’ Hussain explained.

Now, his goal is to normalize drug testing before consumption. 

‘If it becomes standard to test substances before buying, it’ll make it harder for dealers to sell anything laced,’ he said. 

He also advocates for government funding through opioid settlement dollars to make fentanyl detection tools more accessible. 

To raise awareness, Hussain’s team is distributing free samples and educating students at college campuses like UCLA and USC. 

‘We’re not trying to sell — we’re leading with education,’ he emphasized.

His message is clear: ‘If you’re consuming anything not from a pharmacy, you should test it first.’

Drug dealers are flooding Florida with fentanyl-laced party drugs during spring break, state officials warn. 

Using social media apps like Snapchat and Instagram, they advertise substances like Xanax, cocaine and ecstasy to thousands of students.

Law enforcement fears these drugs contain deadly fentanyl doses, with the DEA reporting 70 percent of illicit pills could be lethal. 

Some dealers operate openly in busy party areas.

To combat overdoses, health groups plan to distribute 5,000 naloxone doses. Fort Lauderdale officials are also offering free roofie tests to prevent drink spiking.

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody urges spring breakers to stay alert, warning that fentanyl is being found in nearly all illicit drugs. 

A sheriff cautions that buying drugs on the street may mean “ingesting 100 percent fentanyl.”

Nonprofit Care Resource is distributing naloxone and warning about xylazine, another dangerous substance often mixed into drugs. 

In 2022, several West Point football players overdosed on fentanyl-laced cocaine in Florida.

Fort Lauderdale Fire Department Battalion Chief Steve Gollan told Local 10 that two of the people who overdosed were sickened because they tried to perform CPR on the initial four overdose victims. 

He said the opioid-overdose-reversing drug naloxone, which is sold under the brand name Narcan, was administered to revive the victims.

Despite the continuing threat fentanyl poses, U.S. drug overdose deaths have decreased by nearly 24 percent from September 2023 to last September, according to new CDC data. 

Provisional figures from the National Vital Statistics System show approximately 87,000 deaths in the 12 months ending September 2024, down from about 114,000 the previous year, the lowest total since June 2020.