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SCMP Reporter

Up to a third of party drug users arrested in Guangdong are from Hong Kong, according to the head of the police Narcotics Bureau.

Cross-border excursions to rave parties - sometimes involving middle-aged people  - had resulted in fewer party drugs being seized in Hong Kong, said Chief Superintendent Kenny Ip Lau-chuen.

'A recent example was when our counterpart at the Public Security Bureau raided a high-end, luxury disco in Shenzhen on November 29. Nine of the 40 people arrested for substance abuse were Hong Kong residents.

'Some of them were aged over 40,' Mr Ip said.

Party drugs were a third cheaper on the mainland than in Hong Kong, Mr Ip added.

The number of  drug abuse cases was down in the first three-quarters of this year compared with the same period last year. The cases fell 16 per cent - from 13,529 to 11,333, police statistics showed.

Although they have seized fewer party drugs this year, police said psychotropic drug abuse was still rampant in Hong Kong, particularly among young people.

The Narcotics Bureau is now investigating how young people use the internet to exchange information on party drugs.

'We've a team of people working on the Web,' Mr Ip said.

'Some addicts we've spoken to said ICQ [instant messenger] was maybe the most powerful tool addicts can use to share [information on] their drug-taking experiences.'

More than 90 per cent of young addicts use psychotropic drugs, Mr Ip said.

Ketamine has now replaced Ecstasy as the most popular drug among young users.

Over the past 10 months, two new ketamine users aged under 21 were arrested every day.

Of the 774 people arrested for ketamine use over the period, 538 were under 21.

Mr Ip said an estimated 500 grams of ketamine was consumed in Hong Kong every day, with a street value of $120,000. This was enough for about 2,000 doses.

The Narcotics Bureau chief said they were expecting to find fewer drug traffickers and dealers at entertainment establishments, such as discos, during this Christmas period compared with last year.

One reason is the Narcotics Bureau has been hitting syndicates at their roots and cutting off supply, he said.

A large portion of party drugs seized in Hong Kong were manufactured on the mainland.

He said the way to tackle drug trafficking in Hong Kong was to target mainland suppliers before the drugs get to the city.

'The most important thing is gathering intelligence,' Mr Ip said. 'We have to keep working with our mainland counterparts and exchange what we have gathered, so they can raid the black spots north of the border as soon as we learn about them.'

With the introduction of relaxed travel arrangements for mainland tourists, officials are putting extra effort into spotting dubious travellers.

Investigations show drug couriers are paid between $1,000 and $2,000 for each trip they make.



High rate of HK party drug users caught in Guangdong