WOW –
March 6, 2018 – As they wait, Chris’ parents are funding his habit because they’ve been told his addiction is so bad, he needs to stay on the drugs until he goes in. “I’d say I smoke about $120 worth a day,” says Chris, whose father says has “been draining us financially for years now”. In recent weeks there have been three suspected synthetics related deaths; two in Auckland, and one in Christchurch.
Chris knows the risks of his drug use all too well. “Every day it’s like playing Russian roulette.” Around 30 deaths have been linked to synthetics in the last year, and the talk among users is that there’s another bad batch out there. Police say recently they’ve sent more synthetic drugs than normal to the Institute of Environmental Science and Research (ISR) for testing. In many of the samples, they’re finding the potent chemical AMB-FUBINACA – the same substance linked to last year’s spate of deaths. Police say the focus is on finding those making and dealing it.
