The death of a resident of a halfway house has Halifax police wondering if a batch of dirty drugs has hit the streets.

Bruce Reginald Smith, 27, died Saturday morning in hospital, a few hours after escaping from Carleton Centre in Halifax by jumping out a second-storey window.

Police believe Smith and another inmate had taken some illegal drugs.

That, coupled with three other recent incidents, has prompted police to launch an investigation.

The drug users in these cases were "highly agitated," sweating profusely and had elevated heart rates, police said Monday.

"We don't know at this point whether there's a common thread or not, but it's something that we are looking into," said Const. Jeff Carr, a Halifax Regional Police spokesman.

Carr said it's odd that all five incidents happened over two days.

An autopsy was conducted on Smith on Saturday, but more tests are expected to determine the exact cause of death.

Police said Smith went into cardiac arrest at the hospital.