Users of drug ‘like zombies’
‘‘Their eyes are bloodshot, speech is slurred, they can barely stand up and have trouble functioning.’’
Police fear that a new superaddictive synthetic drug that has hit Porirua streets could be laced with meth.
Sergeant Matiu Grant said police seized a large amount of synthetic cannabis in a Cannons Creek raid last week and have sent it off to be tested, fearing that it has been laced with methamphetamine.
The cannabis drug was likely behind a rise in burglary and theft in the city, as well as people begging at Cannons Creek shops, he said.
‘‘A lot of these guys begging get up to $100 a day, and are buying synthetics with it ... it’s making a mess of people.’’
It was likely the drug was being bought into the city, not manufactured here, Grant said.
‘‘We’re sure this is not just Porirua - it’s region-wide and growing nationally.’’
Porirua constable Andy Alexander said $20 would buy 2.5g of synthetic cannabis and users became ‘‘like zombies’’.
‘‘Their eyes are bloodshot, speech is slurred, they can barely stand up and have trouble functioning.’’
All of Porirua’s Neighbourhood Policing Team members had contacts in the community that were affected in some way by synthetic cannabis, which was banned in 2014.
One police officer recently spoke to a woman whose partner ended up shivering on the floor of their garden shed after a session with the drug, but immediately wanted more once he came off the high.
But a man who works with drug addicts said it was unlikely the drug contained meth.
Drug counsellor Andrew Hopgood said makers of synthetic cannabis might lace the drug with something to give it ‘‘a speedy effect’’, but he didn’t believe it would be methamphetamine.
‘‘They would smoke the meth instead.
‘‘It’s much more expensive than synthetics, so it doesn’t make much sense.’’
Nail polish remover was a common ingredient in synthetic cannabis, he said.
Porirua P-pull methamphetamine support group co-founder Liz Makalio said she had ‘‘heard whispers’’ about synthetics being laced with other drugs.
‘‘They’re a huge problem particularly for young men who can’t afford meth. The damage and addiction it causes can be worse than meth.’’
Porirua school and college principals were aware of the situation, Aotea College’s Kate Gainsford said.
‘‘It’s not what we saw two or three years ago, but we are putting good plans in place and keeping our relationships going with police,’’ she said.
‘‘The worry is we’re going into that summer period when young people have more time on their hands.’’
A recent Massey University report showed that nationally arrests of people who have used synthetic cannabis in the past year dropped from 47 per cent in 2014 to 27 per cent in 2015.
That trend was being bucked in Christchurch and, soon, Porirua police said, incidents would rise in the city unless the community became more vigilant.