West Midlands Police Officers Saving Lives with Naloxone
In July 2019, the West Midlands police became the first police forces in the United Kingdom to administer naloxone nasal spray. All police officers in the city centre are going to be trained on how to use naloxone. The initiative was prompted by the statistics according to which one heroin users dies every three days in Birmingham. (
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-birmingham-49088969).
Putin Instructs Criminalization of Online Propaganda of Drugs in Russia
The Russian president Vladimir Putin ordered the federal executive authorities to develop new legislation on criminalizing “encouraging, use or production of narcotics and psychotropic substances with the help of the informatics and telecommunication network, also known as the “Internet”.” Encouraging drug use is a violation of laws now in Russia, but punishable with lower fines. A specific punishment for an internet crime has not been issued yet. In addition, Putin ordered the Ministry of Interior, also functioning as the federal police, to develop a recruitment plan for new police officers whose task would be to monitor the online drug crimes. (Source0: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/putin-drugs-russia-law-online- propaganda-human-rights-a9174786.html).
Police Chief Blames Drug Dealers of Abusing the Corona Virus
Crisis to Bolster Their Business Drug dealers in North London are profiting from the coronavirus pandemic by contacting clients and encouraging them to pile up on drug supplies in preparation for the isolation. The police warned buyers that drug dealers belong to a high-risk category due to their contacts with many people and advised caution (Source: http://islingtontribune.com/article/police-chief-speaks-out-as-drug-dealers-use- coronavirus-crisis-to-drum-up-business).
Britain’s Drug Dealers Are Dressing Up as Delivery Drivers, Joggers and Nurses
One of the most visible changes perceived by police forces across Britain and drug market observers, including the police, is that with the onset of the COVID 19 virus drug workers and users started restructuring the way they conduct their business. Drug dealers began dressing up in supermarket workers’ uniforms in order to camouflage themselves while delivering drugs to clients’ homes. Others are concealed as joggers or fitness fanatics, in order to deliver crack and heroin in the community. A world renowned drug expert in Liverpool added that some drug dealers carry grocery boxes in order to conceal themselves. Others dress up as fast food delivery motorcyclists or even nurses in order to avoid interrogation by the police. (Source: https://www.vice.com/en_uk/article/n7jgyg/drug-dealers-crack-heroin-coronavirus- lockdown).
Girl Overdosed on MDMA at a Festival
Alex Ross-King (19) died from a drug overdose in January at a music festival in New South Wales, due to an unusually high amount of MDMA. Fearing the police before entering the music festival, she consumed two MDMA pills. New South Wales opposition to drugs testing makes drug dealers sell “more dangerous drugs”, thus increasing the risk of an overdose (Source: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/jul/08/festival-overdose-victim-took- multiple-pills-before-event-to-avoid-police-detection).