Both Ole Miss students who died earlier this week were males, the county coroner's office told Fox News Wednesday — and he said the deaths may not be connected.
The younger victim was 18 and died in a dorm room.
The other was 20 and was found in an off-campus home.
The names are not being released yet.
Toxicology reports are pending and could take weeks.
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves is moving to expedite toxicology reports after store-bought kratom was recovered at the scenes of two University of Mississippi student deaths, Fox News correspondent Madison Scarpino reported on “The Story.”
The students were found dead Monday in separate locations, one in a campus dorm and the other off campus. Authorities have not announced either cause of death or found that kratom played a role. Officials said the deaths are being investigated separately.
Kratom is legal across much of Mississippi but banned in Oxford after the city’s police chief raised concerns about its potential dangers. The plant-based substance is sold in forms including drinks, pills and gummies and is often used for pain relief, energy or euphoria.
Scarpino said the chief previously cited 11 deaths in northern Mississippi in which kratom was found in the victims’ systems, though that did not necessarily mean it caused their deaths.
“It’s terrible because you could go in looking for something that you may think is good, and it can actually kill you,” one student told Fox News.
The local narcotics unit is urging the community to avoid kratom and other drugs as investigators await answers.
Attorney General Todd Blanche said the Justice Department expects to take additional action against dangerous synthetic compounds linked to kratom after federal authorities recently placed three highly potent opioid compounds under emergency Schedule I controls.
“I expect over the next month or two, you’re going to see the Department of Justice do even more work in that space,” Blanche said on “The Will Cain Show.”
Blanche stressed that not all kratom products are the same, noting that some people use the substance in its natural form and believe it offers benefits. However, he warned that highly synthetic versions can pose a serious threat.
“Just because you buy it at a gas station or a smoke shop doesn’t make it safe and doesn’t make it legal,” Blanche said.
His comments came after two University of Mississippi students were found dead at separate campus locations where packaged kratom products were recovered. Authorities have not determined whether kratom played a role in either death.
Blanche said the new Schedule I designation gives federal law enforcement greater power to pursue manufacturers and retailers selling dangerous synthetic opioid products.
{{#rendered}}The deaths of two University of Mississippi students are raising new questions about kratom after packaged products were recovered at both scenes.
Authorities have not determined whether kratom played a role in either death.
Often marketed for energy, pain relief or opioid withdrawal, kratom can act as a stimulant at low doses and produce opioid-like effects at higher amounts, experts told Fox News Digital.
Health experts warn it can cause dependence, heavy sedation, slowed breathing and dangerous reactions when mixed with alcohol or other drugs. Concentrated products containing the potent compound 7-OH are drawing particular concern.
Read Fox News Digital’s Melissa Rudy’s full report on kratom’s risks and warning signs.
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves is warning that illegal drugs have become a major problem on college campuses across the country after two University of Mississippi students died under mysterious circumstances earlier this week.
Narcotics investigators in Lafayette County are looking into both deaths, but their causes have not yet been publicly determined.
Both students were found with packages of the controversial, over-the-counter drug Kratom nearby, and student groups have been circulating warnings about a fentanyl-like synthetic opioid called cychlorphine.
"Mississippi is praying for the families and friends of the two Ole Miss students during this incredibly difficult time," Reeves said in a statement Wednesday. "Illegal drugs are a serious problem at colleges and universities throughout the country. They have resulted in tragic outcomes for far too many American families. As a nation, it’s clear that we must do even more to prevent these harmful substances from entering our country and find more effective ways to educate our children about the destruction illegal drugs cause."
He said that state agencies were assisting local police in the Ole Miss cases and "working to expedite toxicology reports," which are known to take days or weeks to complete.
"Please talk to your children about this situation and the dangers associated with taking illegal drugs," Reeves said. "There has never been a more dangerous time to be a young person in American society. Drug dealers and drug traffickers remain intent on turning a profit, regardless of the damage they leave behind. It’s a terrible reality of living in 2026. Mississippi remains committed to putting these criminals behind bars and will do everything it can to stop them."
A spokesperson for the University of Mississippi told Fox News Digital Wednesday that viral claims there are additional unaccounted for students are untrue, days after two undergrads were found dead.
The school said previously that administrators are "heartbroken" about the loss of two students while urging the public not to speculate or rely on unverified information bubbling up on social media.
"The Coroner's Office has confirmed two student deaths, and University Police are not aware of any additional student deaths," Dr. Shawnboda Mead, vice chancellor for student affairs, said in a statement Tuesday.
Lafayette County authorities have said the two students were found dead with packages of Kratom at the scene, a controversial, commercially available substance. It has not been linked to either death.
Authorities have also warned students against taking any drugs as the investigation plays out and noted that the opioid antidote, Narcan, is available for free from vending machines on and near the campus.
While Kratom is not an opioid, students received warnings about a drug that is, Fox News Digital has confirmed.
It's called cychlorphine, a drug that has been described as "as bad as fentanyl" or even worse.
{{#rendered}}Fox News correspondent Madison Scarpino joins ‘America’s Newsroom’ to report on the tragic deaths of two University of Mississippi students as police warn about dangers of Kratom, which has been called "gas station heroin" by critics.
Two University of Mississippi students were found dead in Oxford, Mississippi, Monday — with the drug discovered at both locations.
Authorities note that toxicological reports are still pending to determine the official cause of death.
Separately, members of the campus Greek Life community are being urged to avoid another powerful drug — cychlorphine. That is a powerful synthetic opioid described by one former DEA agent as "as bad as fentanyl."
Students are being urged not to take any drugs as the investigations play out.
As local, state and federal authorities investigate the deaths of two University of Mississippi students Monday, school leaders are urging the public to be patient and not to repeat "unverified information" they may come across on social media.
"The University is heartbroken by the recent loss of two students and extends our condolences to their families, friends, and loved ones during this difficult time," the schools' vice chancellor for student affairs, Dr. Shawnboda Mead, said in a statement.
"We are aware that considerable unverified information is circulating on social media and in the community regarding these recent student deaths. The Coroner's Office has confirmed two student deaths, and University Police are not aware of any additional student deaths. University Police remain in contact with local and state law enforcement and the causes of the two deaths are still under investigation."
Mead urged the public "not to speculate" until the investigations are complete.
Lafayette County investigators have said that they found the drug Kratom at both scenes, however it is not immediately clear whether that drug played any role in either death. Students have also reportedly been warned about the powerful synthetic opioid, cychlorphine, which sometimes requires multiple doses of opioid antidotes like Narcan to reverse.
Marked cruisers line the street of Rebel Drive outside the University Police headquarters at the University of Mississippi Wednesday.
Two students died earlier this week in separate incidents, one of them off-campus. Lafayette County narcotics investigators have opened separate probes into the cases, but they say that at both scenes, the commercially available drug Kratom was found.
The substance has not immediately been linked to either death, but authorities are urging students to avoid it. It is not legally available for sale in Lafayette County, but it is not outlawed in Mississippi as a whole.
{{#rendered}}Dispatch audio provided by Broadcastify describes firefighters' response to an unresponsive person at the University of Mississippi's Stewart Hall Monday afternoon.
Authorities are investigating two separate deaths involving students on the same day.
According to the schools's website, Stewart Hall is a seven-story residential building for male students that opened in 1963. It is located on Women's Terrace, near the heart of campus.
The dispatcher can be heard reporting to first responders that the subject doesn't appear to be breathing and that they were attempting to coach someone through CPR over the phone as firefighters raced to the scene.
According to the radio traffic, firefighters responded in just under a minute after receiving the call.
Lafayette County narcotics investigators have said that the drug Kratom was found at the scene of both deaths, which are being probed separately. However, it remains unclear whether the drug or something else caused the deaths of those students.
As the investigation continues into the suspicious deaths of two University of Mississippi students Tuesday, students are being urged to avoid taking drugs as police continue their work.
Lafayette County authorities said in a statement they were working with other local departments as well as state and federal agencies, while questions remain about what happened.
Police said they found the drug Kratom at both scenes, but they have not conclusively linked it to either death.
Greek Life organizations were also reportedly warning members of a powerful synthetic opioid called cychlorphine, according to the campus newspaper.
"When things tragic like this happen, it's important to me for students to know that this is a person, not just a giant headline," Raegan Settle, editor in chief of the student-run Daily Mississippian newspaper, told CBS Mornings Wednesday. "This is somebody that you went to class with."
Multiple fraternities and sororities at the University of Mississippi have issued warnings to their members about the synthetic opioid cychlorphine after two students were found dead in separate incidents on campus, according to the college newspaper, the Daily Mississippian.
Cychlorphine can be countered with the opioid antidote, Narcan, which is available for free to students, according to authorities.
According to the paper, students were warned that multiple doses of Narcan may need to be administered due to cychloprhine's "extreme potency."
Multiple fraternities and sororities at the University of Mississippi have issued warnings to their members about the synthetic opioid cychlorphine after two students were found dead in separate incidents on campus, according to the college newspaper, the Daily Mississippian.
Cychlorphine can be countered with the opioid antidote, Narcan, which is available for free to students, according to authorities.
According to the paper, students were warned that multiple doses of Narcan may need to be administered due to cychloprhine's "extreme potency."
Lafayette county authorities have said that a different drug, Kratom, was found at the scene of both deaths and that separate investigations are underway. Police are urging the public to avoid using that drug. As of Wednesday morning, it had not been confirmed as playing a role in either death.
The campus Greek Life community is also on edge, with some groups canceling planned events this week, according to the school paper.
{{#rendered}}Two "college-aged individuals" were found dead in separate incidents Monday, with packages of the over-the-counter drug Kratom in both locations, according to Lafayette County authorities.
The drug had not immediately been linked to either incident, and separate investigations were underway, authorities said.
The University of Mississippi separately confirmed that both victims were students at Ole Miss.
READ MORE: 2 UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI STUDENTS FOUND DEAD, DRUG-RELATED INVESTIGATION UNDERWAY
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