After hundreds of fentanyl deaths, dozens of false leads, immense frustration, and two full years of looking, the DEA finally had the name of the man behind fentanyl. He was George Erik Marquardt.
Denver, CO—In 2024, fentanyl kills over 200 Americans every day, and it gives way to a complex history that leads back to one man: George Erik Marquardt. Following a tragic weekend of fentanyl-related deaths in 1991, Marquardt was interviewed for hundreds of hours after a three-year chase by the DEA. Award-winning author and former undercover agent for the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics, John Madinger, reveals a never-before-seen story of genius minds, criminal pursuits, and the real horrors of the drug scene in his new novel, Lethal Doses: The Story Behind "The Godfather of Fentanyl." This book inspired the Fox News docuseries, The Godfather of Fentanyl, and provides an even more in-depth look behind the scenes of one of America's biggest epidemics.
"Lethal Doses explores the terrifying world of synthetic drugs through the eyes of George Erik Marquardt. This true crime masterpiece reveals the origins of fentanyl and the relentless efforts to stop its deadly spread. Marquardt's journey even included a meeting with J. Robert Oppenheimer, adding a historical twist to his dark legacy." —John J. Kelly, Detroit Free Press
From a young age, Marquardt's intelligence and interest in chemistry set him apart from others. Lethal Doses takes readers down the dark path that Marquardt pursued as he discovers the wealth that comes from drug manufacturing. His new, easier, and cheaper method of making fentanyl leads to decades of tragedy and devastation, while investigators race against the clock to find the source.
"The fictional genius of Breaking Bad's Walter White does not hold a candle to the real chemical genius of the man who unleashed the horrors of fentanyl on an addictive world. In this era of opioid crisis, Madinger's book shines a light on an underworld where truth is stranger, and darker, than any fiction." —Kathryn Picard, Librarian Book Connoisseur, 5-Stars
John Madinger was on the front lines of the fentanyl investigation, and he sat down with Marquardt himself and other figures who played crucial roles to fill out the entire story, as well as analyzing the future patterns of the drug. "The Drug Enforcement Administration recognized Marquardt and fentanyl's significance. In March 1994, it profiled him with four other 'major violators whose illegal activities have damaged American society,' and who were stopped by the DEA in the agency's first twenty years. Twenty years later it named the Marquardt fentanyl investigation one of its top ten cases in the DEA's first forty years," Madinger says.
"Lethal Doses introduces us to a mass murderer who kills with his chemistry, an outlaw with his own moral code, and a conspiracy that continues to affect us all. Riveting, brilliant, unputdownable. It's one of the best books I've read this year." —Jan Brogan, author of The Combat Zone, Final Copy, and A Confidential Source
A true crime story that almost seems beyond reality, Lethal Doses is hard-hitting, thorough, and wildly entertaining. It's the fascinating story of a young boy who turned into a cold-hearted killer. John Madinger offers a fresh, multi-sided perspective on the decades-long drug crisis, and readers will be unable to put it down.
Lethal Doses: The Story Behind "The Godfather of Fentanyl," ISBN 978-1964730158, 442 pages, WildBlue Press, 2024. Available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
About John Madinger: John joined the drug war in 1974 as a sheriff's deputy, then served as a narcotics agent, supervisor, and administrator and a special agent/criminal investigator with the U.S. Department of the Treasury before hitting mandatory retirement age in 2010. He became one of the country's leading authorities on money laundering and the author of Money Laundering: A Guide for Criminal Investigators (3rd Edition). John holds a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from Indiana University and a master's degree in history from the University of Hawaii and graduated from the Oklahoma state police academy, the Drug Enforcement Administration's National Academy, and was the honor graduate in the Treasury Criminal Investigation Training Program.
On the literary front, John also wrote another textbook, Confidential Informant: Law Enforcement's Most Valuable Tool, two novels, Death on Diamond Head and Pipe Dreams, and a history of the opium trade, Opium Kings of Old Hawaii. WildBlue Press published his memoir, Going Under: Kidnapping, Murder, and a Life Undercover, and his most recent book, Lethal Doses: The Story Behind the Godfather of Fentanyl. He grew up in Honolulu, Hawaii, where he spent all but three years of his career, and currently lives in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma with his wife and a Portuguese Water Dog named Indy.
Media Contact: For a review copy or to arrange an interview with John Madinger, contact Scott Lorenz of Westwind Book Marketing at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or at 734-667-2090. Reach Lorenz on Twitter @abookpublicist.