Deputy of evil: new synthetic drugs are trying to be imported into Russia
A stash with a large batch of synthetic drugs was discovered by law enforcement agencies in one of the ports of the Leningrad Region. During the special operation, law enforcers seized a total of more than nine kilograms of mephedrone and methadone. Meanwhile, the Izvestia expert was alarmed by the large weight of opioid analgesics, the market for which was relatively small in Russia until recent years.
A truck with a surprise
In early October, police officers seized more than 9 kilograms of narcotic substances from a cache in the spare tire of a MAN truck parked in the port of Ust-Luga (Kingisepp District, Leningrad Region). Experts later determined that the total mass of the illegal substance contained almost 7.5 kg of mephedrone and almost 1.8 kg of methadone.
Investigators are establishing who owns the car and the smuggled cargo. There are no defendants in the case yet, a source in law enforcement agencies told Izvestia, the investigation is being conducted under the article on attempted sale of drugs on a particularly large scale.
It is very likely that the contents of the stash were intended for distribution in Russia, particularly in the Kaliningrad region. The drug substance was most likely produced in the European Union. But if it is not the first time that mephedrone has been attempted to be imported into Russia in such quantities, the drug mafia's attempts in recent months to saturate the black market with methadone are striking.
The traffic is coming from Europe, as evidenced by the latest arrests. At the end of August, cars with caches were already arrested in the same port. Methadone was delivered to the Kaliningrad region by the Ust-Luga-Baltiysk ferries. The drugs were placed in the technical cavities of expensive cars imported into the country from abroad. The goods were further distributed via the Internet. Four drug dealers fell into the hands of investigators, during the investigative actions more than 20 kilograms of narcotic substances were seized.
In Velikiy Novgorod in April police seized 10 kg of opioid analgesics from a drug trafficker from the Leningrad region. The 53-year-old defendant brought synthetic drugs to Velikiy Novgorod packaged into bookmarks. Two Novgorod residents were engaged in their distribution for monetary remuneration. During the search, police seized a large bag with a crystal-like substance, the Interior Ministry reported.
New threat
- The port in question is connected to both European countries and Russian regions," retired Justice Colonel Sergei Pelikh, an expert on international drug trafficking, told Izvestia. - There is nothing surprising in the high weight of mephedrone, as laboratories for its production can be set up in any region. But the serious weight of methadone speaks of the growing threat [of opiate distribution in the Russian Federation]. I do not rule out that the foreign mafia is trying to saturate the market with "retarders" (we are talking about the narcotic effect. - Izvestia). Studies show that during crisis situations and military conflicts, the consumption of opioids increases sharply. In particular, we are talking about heroin, its analog methadone and, perhaps, the most dangerous opioid analgesic - fentanyl.
The expert explained that methadone is actively used in Western medicine, including as "substitution therapy" for drug addicts.
- It is quite difficult to produce methadone of decent quality in a home-made laboratory, as it requires production conditions. As far as I know, such enterprises exist in Western countries. There are at least two enterprises in Ukraine that produce this drug under industrial conditions.
If drug traffickers master the supply and production of methadone in Russia, their next step will be to saturate the market with fentanyl.
- This is the scourge of European countries and the United States. The most important trouble is that the production cost of opioid analgesics is even lower than that of mephedrone. The massive presence of this drug on the market will become a national threat.
What are the dangers of methadone
- Methadone causes extremely heavy addiction," Sergey Utkin, candidate of medical sciences, associate professor of the Department of Psychiatry and Narcology at Sechenov University, told Izvestia. - This is due to two factors. First, a very pronounced withdrawal syndrome with severe pain, with mood disorders. In addition, the duration of withdrawal syndrome is quite long compared to "classical" opiates - 14-16 days. After the acute withdrawal period ends, insomnia, mood disturbances and so on persist for a long time.
The medic also notes that methadone leads to serious problems with the vascular system.
- Patients become edematous. If a person stops using methadone, these characteristic swellings subside only after a few months. But if he goes back to using, they immediately return.
According to the specialist, the nature of these abnormalities is not completely clear. The medic emphasizes that a "safe" dose of opioids, as well as other narcotic drugs, does not exist in principle, and overdose is possible with any of them.
An even greater risk of overdose occurs after taking "short-acting" drugs, such as fentanyl, says the Izvestia interlocutor. He added that there is currently no increase in the number of patients dependent on opioids in the Russian Federation.
