POLICE SEIZE 166 VIALS OF GHB

Illegal Drug Packs A Dangerous Punch

A routine check on a 17-year-old youth by city police Monday
uncovered 276 millilitres of GHB, a relatively new drug on the city's
drug scene, but one that can pack a dangerous punch, police say.

Vice Insp. Stan Tataryn said police seized 110 two-ml vials and 56
one-ml vials of GHB (Gamma Hydroxy Butyrate), as well as 110 grams of
marijuana from a St. Anne's Road address when they were investigating
an unrelated matter. The GHB and marijuana seized Monday had a street
value of about $6,700.

Tataryn said this is only the second time police have seized GHB, a
colourless, odourless and tasteless liquid taken to achieve
simultaneous ecstasy and alcohol-like effects. Before Monday, police
had only seized one vial of the drug.

What's more worrisome for police is that the drug, which sells for
$10 to $40 a vial, could have been made in a clandestine lab in or
just outside city outskirts.

"But that's the thing," Tataryn said. "You don't know where it's
made. It could be in a lab or a toilet bowl."

The other concern with GHB is that there's a fine line between a
pleasurable high and going into a coma and suffering long-term health
effects.

"It can take your kidneys," Tataryn added.

The drug bust -- the teen has been charged with possession for the
purpose of trafficking -- follows the arrests of five students for
drug dealing at Kelvin High School last Friday. Two more students
were arrested Monday night by city police and officers plan to arrest
two more students.

They were each nabbed by a 33-year-old female undercover officer
posing as a student, as they sold her small amounts of marijuana and
ecstasy.

Use of GHB is unpredictable, as too much can easily cause
unconsciousness. Some users have already ended up at the Health
Sciences Centre emergency ward.

In the U.S., the liquid is known as a date-rape drug. Its use has
also resulted in fatalities and manslaughter charges.

Medical experts say GHB was originally developed as an anesthetic,
but was withdrawn due to unwanted side effects. The only legal use of
GHB has been in investigational treatment for narcolepsy.

Medical journals say GHB decreases body fat - some body builders use
GHB as a growth hormone stimulant - and induces sleep.

For young drug users, it's taken to increase their sense of awareness
and to reduce inhibitions at raves or nightclubs.

However, if people take too much, it can cause vomiting, drowsiness,
dizziness, vertigo, seizures and comas. Users are cautioned not to
drink alcohol or use other drugs when using GHB, as chances of an
overdose increase significantly.