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| Further arrests over 'contaminated' ecstasy deaths | Further arrests over 'contaminated' ecstasy deaths |
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| Four more people have been arrested by police investigating the deaths of partygoers believed to have taken contaminated ecstasy. | Four more people have been arrested by police investigating the deaths of partygoers believed to have taken contaminated ecstasy. |
| The latest arrests are related to two deaths in Derbyshire just before Christmas. Charlotte Woodiwiss, a 20-year-old art student, was found dead in a flat in Chapel-en-le-Frith on 22 December. The following day the body of 18-year-old Dale Yates was discovered in a flat in the nearby town of Buxton. | |
| Both are thought to have taken a drug they believed to be ecstasy. But Derbyshire police said toxicology tests have shown that PMA has been "a significant factor in these deaths". | |
| PMA is often sold as ecstasy (MDMA), but is much stronger and can cause a fatal rise in body temperature. It takes longer to act than MDMA and so unsuspecting users have been known to take extra pills, believing the first one haven't "worked". | PMA is often sold as ecstasy (MDMA), but is much stronger and can cause a fatal rise in body temperature. It takes longer to act than MDMA and so unsuspecting users have been known to take extra pills, believing the first one haven't "worked". |
| The drug is also known as Dr Death, Red Mitsubishi, PMMA, Pink McDonald's, Pink Ecstasy, Mitsubishi Turbo, Killer, Double Stacked, Chicken Yellow and Chicken Fever. It has been linked to deaths throughout Europe, in Israel and Canada as well as in other parts of the UK. | The drug is also known as Dr Death, Red Mitsubishi, PMMA, Pink McDonald's, Pink Ecstasy, Mitsubishi Turbo, Killer, Double Stacked, Chicken Yellow and Chicken Fever. It has been linked to deaths throughout Europe, in Israel and Canada as well as in other parts of the UK. |
| Few revellers take PMA on purpose, said Harry Shapiro, director of communications at the drugs charity DrugScope. "Generally, people will take the drug as part of a tablet they think is wholly ecstasy. And, at street level, it's very possible the dealers think it is ecstasy too. But if you look at chatrooms you'll see that more experienced drug users warn people off it because of the dangerous side effects." | |
| Shapiro said that chemists making illegal drugs would usually not manufacture pure PMA because there is no demand for it. "More likely PMA finds its way into tablets through poor chemistry," he explained. "There is no quality control on the illegal drugs market. If the right chemicals are not to hand to make the intended drug, other similar chemicals could be substituted without anybody beyond the laboratory realising it." | Shapiro said that chemists making illegal drugs would usually not manufacture pure PMA because there is no demand for it. "More likely PMA finds its way into tablets through poor chemistry," he explained. "There is no quality control on the illegal drugs market. If the right chemicals are not to hand to make the intended drug, other similar chemicals could be substituted without anybody beyond the laboratory realising it." |
| Fifteen arrests have now been made in connection with the Derbyshire investigation. A 21-year-old man, a 33-year-old man, an 18-year-old man and a 27-year-old man, all from the High Peak area, were arrested on Wednesday in connection with the suspected supply of a class A drug. | Fifteen arrests have now been made in connection with the Derbyshire investigation. A 21-year-old man, a 33-year-old man, an 18-year-old man and a 27-year-old man, all from the High Peak area, were arrested on Wednesday in connection with the suspected supply of a class A drug. |
| The people who were previously arrested have been released on police bail pending further police investigations. | The people who were previously arrested have been released on police bail pending further police investigations. |
| The Derbyshire deaths have not been formally linked to those on Sunday and Monday of three young men in Greater Manchester and Merseyside, who also died after taking what they thought was ecstasy, but police in all three forces are not ruling out a link. | |
| Wigan plasterer Gareth Ashton, 28, died at Wigan Infirmary on Monday after suffering a massive heart attack. On Sunday, 19-year-old Jordan Chambers, also from Wigan, died at Oldham hospital. | Wigan plasterer Gareth Ashton, 28, died at Wigan Infirmary on Monday after suffering a massive heart attack. On Sunday, 19-year-old Jordan Chambers, also from Wigan, died at Oldham hospital. |
| An unnamed 26-year-old died in the early hours of Sunday at a guesthouse in Liverpool. | An unnamed 26-year-old died in the early hours of Sunday at a guesthouse in Liverpool. |
| There has been much speculation that PMA also caused these deaths, but police in Greater Manchester and Merseyside stressed on Wednesday that toxicology reports had not yet been carried out. The postmortem examinations are scheduled to take place later this week. | |
| On Wednesday two men arrested in connection with the Wigan deaths were bailed without charge. | On Wednesday two men arrested in connection with the Wigan deaths were bailed without charge. |