Piles of powdered ecstasy laced with a particularly toxic compound have been seized by Calgary police just as testing has linked another death in the city to the substance.

In all, 1,300 grams of the drug was obtained through covert operations conducted by police as well as subsequent search warrants of two homes in the northwest.

Analysis has already found a compound known as PMMA in 500 grams of the seized powder with more testing to come on the remaining quantity.

PMMA has now been linked to eight deaths in Calgary, as police revealed Wednesday a 37-year-old man who overdosed in a northeast home in January also ingested the substance.

Joshua Bradly Cook and Elizabeth Thomas, both 19, have been charged with trafficking.

“We are concerned for the well-being of any member of the public who may have purchased illegal drugs from these two individuals…. It is imperative that Calgarians do not let their guard down,” said police Staff Sgt. Mike Bossley. “We realized that this is not all of the drugs … that could potentially be PMMA ecstasy.”

Bossley said the powder found would typically be compressed into a pill format or poured into capsules and then sold for anywhere from $3 to $20.

PMMA was also found during the investigation of a drug overdose in Red Deer last month and the deaths of at least five individuals in British Columbia. The substance is said to be five times more toxic than the more common ecstasy compound MDMA.