A stronger heroin deals are being blamed for a steep rise in the number of users dying from overdoses. Strathclyde police said that the number of victims is almost twice what it was last year.
Strathclyde police have issued a warning to drug users about the quality of the class-A drug. A lethally pure form of heroin is being sold on the west coast of Scotland has caused a sharp rise in drug-related deaths.
Since the beginning of this year there has been 82 inquiries into drug-related deaths in Strathclyde, compared to 48 for the same period last year. The police have said that not only is the heroin presently available highly pure, a typical deal currently contains 125mg of the drug, compared to the 100mg which was the standard norm in the past. This they say has resulted in the average strength of a street deal being almost twice that of the same period last year.They further explained that the high-purity heroin could be lethal to addicts, whose tolerance is based on normal strengths of the drug, which in normal conditions are adulterated, or "cut", by drug dealers in order to make their supplies go further and generate more money.
Detective Superintendent John McSporran, of Strathclyde Police, said that the problem has highlighted the inherent danger of taking drugs, but also advised addicts take precautions to ensure their own safety.
He said that the drug users should be aware that heroin of a higher than normal strength is being sold on the streets of Strathclyde, so he urged the people addicted to taking these illegal stuff to take the necessary precautions, making sure the drugs were safe, and that they were not alone when consuming them. Anti-drugs campaigners have called for those peddling killer deals to be charged with culpable homicide.
