The FDA is conducting a criminal investigation into the recent spike of vaping-related illnesses, which have affected more than 500 people to date, according to The Washington Post.
Investigators from the FDA's Office of Criminal Investigations started their investigation shortly after the first cases of the illness were reported this summer.
The focus of the investigation is on the supply chain and specifically about the issues with THC-containing products, Mitch Zeller, director of the FDAs Center for Tobacco Products told The Washington Post. The agency is not planning to prosecute people for personal use of any controlled substances.
FDA officials said they have not identified a specific product or substance causing the illness yet, but they suspect some kind of chemical exposure is what's making people sick. They plan to analyze samples collected from sick patients across the country and test them for a broad range of chemicals, according to The Washington Post.
The FDA also plans to use social media to conduct an anonymous survey about vaping habits to help identify the cause of the vaping-related illnesses.
Read the full report here.