A deadly "Frankenstein" drug that can be up to 500 times stronger than heroin is ravaging Britain's high streets, with toxic batches leaving users dead or hospitalised. Nitazenes, a category of super-strength synthetic opioids, are flooding the country via black-market websites and postal deliveries.
Originally designed as extreme painkillers
Originally designed by scientists in the 1950s as extreme painkillers, they were never approved for medical use because they were far too addictive and lethal. However, rogue chemists in China are now churning out the synthetic substance to supply dark web pushers across the UK, reports The Telegraph.
The terrifying reality of the crisis was laid bare when dark web dealer Robert Poleszak was nabbed by the National Crime Agency. The 45-year-old Polish national, who pleaded guilty to selling Class A drugs, received shocking reviews from buyers left clinging to life.
Buyers' reviews reveal deadly consequences
In court details cited by The Telegraph, one terrified customer wrote of Poleszak's opioid pills: "Stopped breathing and ended up in hospital for a night, would NOT recommend." Two other buyers were unable to leave feedback after dying from fatal overdoses.
Experts warn the drug makes heroin look like paracetamol, with a single grain of salt-sized dose capable of killing an adult. Known as the "invisible killer", nitazenes have already been officially linked to at least 400 deaths across the UK in just three years.
Toxicology experts warn of hidden toll
However, toxicology experts fear the true body count is significantly higher because the chemical breaks down rapidly in the body, leaving almost no trace during post-mortems.
Speaking to The Telegraph on the scale of the threat, Dr Caroline Copeland, a senior lecturer in Pharmacology and Toxicology at King's College London, warned the substance is virtually impossible to measure safely. Comparing lethal doses using salt, Dr Copeland explained that while a deadly dose of heroin equals a quarter of a teaspoon, nitazenes require "just a single grain of salt – and not a big one either."
She added: "Often dealers have no idea which is stronger or weaker. They aren't pharmaceutical firms with safety and toxicity tests – their tests are the users on the street."
Heroin shortage fuels synthetic surge
The influx of synthetic opioids comes as international heroin supplies plummet following the Taliban's crackdown on opium harvesting in Afghanistan. To plug the gap and max out profits, pushers are secretly mixing nitazenes into street heroin, cocaine and fake prescription pills without buyers knowing.
Former deputy drug tsar Mike Trace warned The Telegraph that unwitting users are playing Russian roulette. "Nitazenes are massively more powerful than heroin, so the line between a manageable dose and a lethal one is very hard to tell," Trace said. "And when people don't even know they're using them, it's like playing Russian roulette with the risk of overdosing. It represents a big change in the market."
The surge in synthetic opioids is fuelling a mounting crisis on British high streets, where comatose users and paramedic call-outs have become a daily nightmare. Despite massive police busts – including a raid in east London that netted 150,000 nitazene pills – experts warn law enforcement alone won't stop the tide.
