E-llusion
Bluelight Crew
- Joined
- Nov 3, 2002
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ECSTASY tablets are being laced with deadly chemicals, anaesthetics and crushed glass as drug dealers attempt to cut costs and swindle users, the Australian Federal Police warned yesterday.
In a major alert to parents, concerned police say teenagers are "dicing with death" and risking permanent brain damage by taking pills that could be up to 10 times stronger than regular ecstasy, commonly referred to as MDMA.
"One of the biggest problems with consuming tablets being sold as ecstasy is that you never know what you are actually taking, it is more like playing Russian roulette," AFP border and international manager Assistant Commissioner Tim Morris said.
During recent drug hauls, the AFP's illicit drug intelligence program has analysed tablets that have shown traces of various "adulterants" including heroin, LSD, rat poison, methamphetamine, veterinary anaesthetics and crushed glass.
Police said that while some ecstasy tablets look normal, the branding on pills must not be mistaken as some sort of "quality assurance" and a spokesman said users were "dicing with death" by taking the "deadly" pills.
The latest Federal Government statistics estimated that of the 600,000 users of ecstasy in Australia, 8.3 per cent have used the drug at least once a week.
Among 14- to 19-year-old users 17.3 per cent used ecstasy - which experts say is growing in popularity compared with other illicit drugs - at least once a week.
Recent government statistics also show that over 1.5 million had used ecstasy in their life and males were more likely than females to have used ecstasy.
Police say deadly chemicals, including poisons, are being mixed into "impure" ecstasy pills sold by dealers, including MDA, PMA, PMMA and 2CB, which has "hallucinogenic effects".
Illicit drugs expert Paul Dillon, from Drug and Alcohol Research and Training Australia, said ecstasy is becoming cheaper on the streets, retailing for between $20 and $35, and has become known as a "notoriously impure drug".
"Drug users don't care that it's not being called ecstasy any more as long as they are flying," Mr Dillon said. "They don't call it (ecstasy), they say, 'I'm going to take some pills'."
He said all these toxic chemicals have a similar damaging effect on the brain, with PMA being the most notorious impurity.
It has killed dozens of young people from overdoses over the past decade.
A more alarming trend highlighted by Mr Dillon was that other illicit drugs were "going down" in popularity, while ecstasy "is bucking the trend".
"We need to start looking at ways of dealing with it more effectively, especially as it's getting cheaper and is of poor quality," he said, warning parents and drug users to be "extremely careful".
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By Brad Watts
March 13, 2009 12:00am
http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,27574,25178918-5006009,00.html
In a major alert to parents, concerned police say teenagers are "dicing with death" and risking permanent brain damage by taking pills that could be up to 10 times stronger than regular ecstasy, commonly referred to as MDMA.
"One of the biggest problems with consuming tablets being sold as ecstasy is that you never know what you are actually taking, it is more like playing Russian roulette," AFP border and international manager Assistant Commissioner Tim Morris said.
During recent drug hauls, the AFP's illicit drug intelligence program has analysed tablets that have shown traces of various "adulterants" including heroin, LSD, rat poison, methamphetamine, veterinary anaesthetics and crushed glass.
Police said that while some ecstasy tablets look normal, the branding on pills must not be mistaken as some sort of "quality assurance" and a spokesman said users were "dicing with death" by taking the "deadly" pills.
The latest Federal Government statistics estimated that of the 600,000 users of ecstasy in Australia, 8.3 per cent have used the drug at least once a week.
Among 14- to 19-year-old users 17.3 per cent used ecstasy - which experts say is growing in popularity compared with other illicit drugs - at least once a week.
Recent government statistics also show that over 1.5 million had used ecstasy in their life and males were more likely than females to have used ecstasy.
Police say deadly chemicals, including poisons, are being mixed into "impure" ecstasy pills sold by dealers, including MDA, PMA, PMMA and 2CB, which has "hallucinogenic effects".
Illicit drugs expert Paul Dillon, from Drug and Alcohol Research and Training Australia, said ecstasy is becoming cheaper on the streets, retailing for between $20 and $35, and has become known as a "notoriously impure drug".
"Drug users don't care that it's not being called ecstasy any more as long as they are flying," Mr Dillon said. "They don't call it (ecstasy), they say, 'I'm going to take some pills'."
He said all these toxic chemicals have a similar damaging effect on the brain, with PMA being the most notorious impurity.
It has killed dozens of young people from overdoses over the past decade.
A more alarming trend highlighted by Mr Dillon was that other illicit drugs were "going down" in popularity, while ecstasy "is bucking the trend".
"We need to start looking at ways of dealing with it more effectively, especially as it's getting cheaper and is of poor quality," he said, warning parents and drug users to be "extremely careful".
-------------------
By Brad Watts
March 13, 2009 12:00am
http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,27574,25178918-5006009,00.html
(tehehe)
