Hong Kong police seize 23.3kg of ‘happy powder’, biggest bust of date-rape drug in 10 years
- Police warn residents to be on their guard while socialising at bars or other entertainment venues
Hong Kong police have made their biggest seizure of a date-rape drug known as “happy powder” in a decade after confiscating 23.3kg (51lbs) of the illegal substance at a public housing flat, prompting the force to warn bar-goers to be on their guard over spiked drinks.
Senior Inspector Tong Wai-kwok of the force’s narcotics bureau said on Wednesday a suspected female drug trafficker was arrested when the haul was seized the previous day.
Tong said officers arrested the 31-year-old woman outside her Tuen Mun flat on suspicion of trafficking in a dangerous drug – an offence punishable by up to life in prison.
“There were 4,654 packs of the narcotic weighing 23.3kg in her handbag and a suitcase found inside the flat,” he said.
Tong said the illegal substance had an estimated street value of HK$2.3 million (US$294,460), adding it was the biggest seizure of the drug since it was first discovered in the city in 2013.
According to the senior inspector, “happy powder” is a mixture of different drugs such as ketamine and PMMA, or para-methoxymethamphetamine.