WARNING: new drug hits the party scene
There is a new drug on the market, which has already claimed the lives of several teenagers
POLOKWANE – The drug first made headlines at the beginning of the year when the police were tasked to investigate a mysterious drug that was killing young people, mostly in KwaZulu-Natal.
Known by many street names such as “Mercedes”, “Mitsubishi” or”Lacoste”, the drug is ecstasy-based and is usually sold in tablet form. It is white in colour and has a piece of metal wire lodged in its core, and in some of the tablets, traces of different poisons have been found.
It is called Mercedes, Mitsubishi or Lacoste as the badges of these manufacturers are engraved on the tablets.
The drug is mostly used on the party scene and retails between R30 and R60.
Amanda Swanepoel from the South African National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (Sanca) Far North Polokwane, says the biggest issue with these new drugs is that people are not sure what is being used to manufacture them, and where they are manufactured.
“It is important to remember that these drugs are manufactured in clandestine (backyard) laboratories. The user therefore never knows what he or she is consuming and in most cases can lead to poisoning,” Swanepoel says.
She says no cases have been reported yet, and that Sanca warns parents to be on the look-out for changes in their child’s behavior that may be drug related.
These are some of the changes to look-out for:
• Auditory hallucination
• Visual hallucination
• Delusion
• Dehydration
• Aggressiveness
• Depression
• Vomiting
• Severe abdominal pain.
Polokwane police spokesperson, Capt Ntobeng Phala, says there have been no reports of the drug in the city yet.
“The police warn residents to come forward with information on any new drugs as this will help in the fight against crime, of which drug abuse is a large part,” says Phala.
Anyone with information on this or other drugs is urged to contact their nearest police station.
Those in need of assistance on drug abuse can contact Sanca Far North Polokwane at (015) 295 3700 or by sending an e-mail to amanda@fnda.co.za or riette@fnda.co.za.
Alternatively, they can be found at 33 Kerk Street.
