ECSTASY SUSPECTED IN PARTY DEATH

Boissevain RCMP suspect Ecstasy, a drug associated with city raves, is
involved in a weekend death of a Winnipeg woman at a party in Boissevain.

Melissa Sanchez Panganiban, 20, of Wellington Avenue in Winnipeg, was
pronounced dead early yesterday after being taken by ambulance to the
Deloraine Health Centre.

Friends reported to police she had taken two Ecstasy tablets during a party.

Ecstasy is a street name for methylenedioxymethanphetamine or MDMA, and a
controlled substance in Canada.

Panganiban was one of approximately 20 others at a party.

"She passed out in front of her friends. They started to panic and phoned
the ambulance," says Const. Joe Frizzley, of the Turtle Mountain RCMP,
Boissevain office.

She was not breathing and unresponsive, according to police, and people
began performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

Paramedics arrived quickly after the 4 a.m. call, continued CPR and took
her to Deloraine where Panganiban was pronounced dead at 6:42 a.m. An
autopsy has been performed but results have not yet been released and
police could not confirm cause of death late yesterday.

Police say alcohol was consumed by people who were at the party.

"They're all friends, so naturally they were worried. I think it really hit
home when they saw one of their friends not doing very well," Frizzley says.

Foul play is not considered to be a factor at this time, says Const. Frizzley.

Police did not locate any drugs on the scene and no charges have been laid.

The white powder drug is sold in a colourful variety of tablets, making it
difficult to identify its true ingredient.

While Panganiban and her friends may have thought she was taking ecstasy,
police will not know for sure until the autopsy report is complete.

The owners of the home were not present, but a member of the family was,
according to Frizzley. All other party-goers were from Winnipeg, police say.

"We've never had any deaths associated with Ecstasy in Boissevain that I
know of," he says.

"It's troubling because we're trying to educate people. It'll slowly sneak
its way into communities like this."

Ecstasy tablets often have graphic designs or commercial logos imprinted on
them and are usually taken orally.

They can, however, be crushed and snorted, injected or taken as suppositories.

The stimulant, which increases a person's heart rate and temperature, is
popular with middle class adults and young adults.

The psycho-active drug has hallucinogenic and amphetamine-like properties
and is also called the "love drug," as it lowers users' inhibitions.

One pill can sell for more than $25 on the street and suppresses the need
to sleep, drink and sleep, and can cause severe dehydration.

"They call it a designer drug," says Frizzley. "It's a chemical drug, so I
don't think there is one pill that's the same as the other."