Man Arrested in Mass Drug Overdose That Killed 1 Teen and Left 10 People Hospitalized
March 18, 2011— -- Police reportedly arrested this evening a suspect in connection with the mass overdose of a synthetic drug that left one man dead and 10 others hospitalized in Blaine, Minn.
He is suspected of providing the hallucinogenic drug 2C-E that killed Trevor Robinson, 19, according to the Associated Press. Robinson was the father of a 5-month-old baby.
Most of the victims have been released from the hospital, according to the AP.
The group took the drug during a spring-break party at the home of one of the hospitalized boys. The other victims fled the residence and were suffering the effects of the overdose at separate locations before authorities found them and took them to three different hospitals. Two hospitals had released all but one of the overdose victims by early Friday afternoon, the third hospital did not provide an update on its victims, said police.
The hallucinogenic drug is also known as "Europa" and, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration, "Tootsie," a play of its chemical name, "Two"-"C"-"E." Officials say the drug was ordered on the Internet.
"Just because you have an assumption it's legal and can buy it online, in no way is it safe," Paul Sommer of the Anoka County Sheriff's office told WCCO-TV.
The drug is illegal. It is an analog, or a close chemical cousin, of 2C-B, a controlled substance that is legally available only to registrants such as researchers, chemists or certain doctors; it is illegal for anyone else to have it.
Because the DEA identifies it as an analog of a controlled substance, 2C-E is also technically illegal.
Synthetic hallucinogens are becoming increasingly more available, coming from countries such as China and Thailand where there is little regulation and oversight on the production of chemicals, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration.
"We're seeing a lot of kids ordering them online, they're available on the Internet, and there's no regulation in the production of these substances," Dawn Dearden of the DEA said. "You have no idea of the dosage you're getting. It can be different form buyer to buyer, purchase to purchase."
Lawmakers and drug enforcement agencies are increasing their attention to the availability of synthetic drugs. In Minnesota, the state House last month approved a bill to ban synthetic marijuana. In February, New York Sen. Charles Schumer proposed a bill to add bath salts to a list of federally controlled substances. Phony bath salts made with methylenedioxypyrovalerone and mephedrone are designed with the express purpose of giving a cheap, legal high. They can cause hallucinations, paranoia, suicidal thoughts, even some deaths.
