IMPORTER STILL SELLING FANTASY-LIKE CHEMICAL

A Timaru importer on Sunday admitted continuing to sell a fantasy-like
chemical even after the Ministry of Health deemed it dangerous, and
confiscated his stocks.

Alphaware NZ director James McNee marketed the 1,4 butanediol solution,
named Puritech, as a compact disc and tape cleaner.

Ministry of Health inspectors confiscated 60 litres of the chemical in
January after an Auckland distributor remarketed it as a dietary
supplement, called One4b.

One4b, which the body converts to gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB) or fantasy,
has been linked to the death of Auckland man Shaun Jacob Brennan, 22, on
Saturday.

Mr McNee admitted he had continued to sell large quantities of Puritech
overseas, over the Internet, and to a number of clients within New Zealand.

He said he was in constant contact with Auckland distributor Mark Barlow,
and had sold him a consignment of the solvent as recently as two weeks ago.

Mr McNee's confiscated Puritech stocks had not been returned, but he had
been advised the investigation had been completed.

Ministry officials had given no indication whether he would be prosecuted
under the Food Act, or what other action would be taken.

"I'm not worried. I'm biding my time," he said.

Mr McNee said he was surprised that Mr Brennan died, as it was commonly
known there was a "simple antidote" to the drug, which was formerly used as
an anaesthetic.

"It just seems strange that (the doctors) didn't use that," he said.

"Normally the person who's given (the antidote) will come around within a
number of minutes. It could just be a case of emergency people not knowing
too much about it."

Mr McNee said he had ingested the solvent daily for about three years -
"Water's a solvent, too" - and received no adverse affects from it.

The chemical gave a sense of euphoria and meant he only needed five hours
of sleep each night, he said.

It could be dangerous when mixed with anti-depressant pills or alcohol,
however.

"If there was education you could avoid a lot of deaths straight away...In
all cases (of death) people have exceeded the recommended dose.

"There's usually one idiot out there who's going to take too much."