Drug-checking charity The Loop has issued a warning after pills confirmed to contain nitazenes were associated with two recent deaths.
An investigation is underway after a man and a woman in their 20s died in Southall, west London, on 26 May. ‘This is following reports that the individuals allegedly passed away after taking an illicit substance in the form of a green pill,’ a Metropolitan Police spokesperson told the BBC.
According to The Loop, two pills tested by the Eurofins laboratory were found to contain the highly potent synthetic opioid N-Pyrrolidino isotonitazene as well as ‘trace element’ ketamine and MDMA, while another pill tested by The Loop and the University of Bath also contained N-Pyrrolidino isotonitazene and trace element MDMA.
While the drugs resemble oxycodone pills, the ‘purchase intent’ for the pills is unknown, says The Loop, meaning it is unclear what people thought they were buying. The charity is urging people to test their drugs before use – with either nitazene testing strips or a professional drug checking service – and to always carry naloxone. ‘Don’t take drugs alone,’ it states.
Earlier this year Public Health Scotland (PHS) issued a warning after an increase in ‘sudden collapse’ overdoses – some of them fatal – with a ‘nitazene-type opioid’ identified in heroin samples linked to the overdoses. The Home Office recently issued new recommendations to help police and local councils address the threat posed by synthetic opioids, including better information sharing and fast-tracked drug testing when suspected synthetic opioids are seized.
Last year saw the highest ever number of new nitazenes reported to the EU’s early warning system, according to EUDA’s European drug report.