LIFE OF CRAVINGS AND CRIME

A Dundee heroin addict, who smokes up to UKP50 of the drug a day, has
told of his bleak descent into a lifestyle of cravings and crime
(writes Graham Huband).

Speaking to the Tele, the 27-year-old spoke of his daily routine of
seeking out a dealer to buy a UKP20 bag of heroin, smoking it and then
returning to the street just hours later to score again.

The man said the depressing cycle had been going on -- with a few
exceptions when he was accepted onto a methadone programme and his
usage stabilised -- since he was 16 and introduced to heroin while in
prison.

He said he hopes one day he will have a family of his own, but the
strength of his addiction is such that for now his only focus is on
feeding his habit through whatever means possible.

The addict said he often got cash for drugs from his family, but also
relied on his dealers to extend him a line -- basically, heroin on tick.

He said when he had exhausted those two options he turned to
shoplifting to make money, as he feared having to go cold turkey as
his body needed the calming influence of his regular hit.

The addict said, "When I get up I have to take heroin so I need to get
money. Sometimes I go shoplifting, because when my family and that
can't help I have to do something because I feel that bad.

"The physical pain you get is terrible. You get a sore back and sore
legs, you get dead agitated, you are sweating and you can't sleep. You
are so weak you can't move your muscles and you have really bad
stomach cramps -- it is just horrible.

"I have tried cold turkey, but if I go to the shop and bump into a
drug dealer in the street I end up buying a bag."

The man said taking heroin no longer made him high, it simply allowed
his body to function without pain.

He said, "At the start there is an upside to it -- you get stoned and
it is like you are sleeping. I got introduced to heroin when I was in
prison -- I wasn't coping too well and a boy said to me to take this.

"I didn't know what it was but I got a brilliant sleep that night and
it passed the night away dead quickly. Since then I've come out and
heroin is everywhere, there are dealers in every scheme.

"I'm sort of well known with being in and out of prison all my life,
and it would not matter what scheme I went to because they know I take
drugs. I think I'd probably have to move out of Dundee (to escape drugs)."

The addict said his only hope of climbing out of his descent into
drugs oblivion -- which has already claimed the life of one of his
brothers -- was by regaining the methadone prescription.

He was thrown off the programme after giving a "dirty" drug test that
showed up traces of heroin in his sample. He claims he was bullied by
dealers in his area to return to the drug and his craving was too much
to resist.

He said, "I would like to have kids but I wouldn't bring them into the
world the way my life is just now. This afternoon I'll need to go and
get another bag of heroin and then I'll just come back and smoke that
and that will be me to night time, when I'll have to go and get
another bag. It does depress me, but when I take the heroin it blanks
everything out."