Drug addicts turn to DIY to get their fix

DRUG addicts in Edinburgh are buying household chemicals from DIY stores and using them to make crack cocaine, according to a city support group.

Staff at the Turning Point centre in Leith said increasing numbers of heroin addicts were buying ammonia from DIY outlets and using it to turn cocaine bought from dealers into crack cocaine.

The rise in "home chemistry" has fuelled fears that it will become impossible to help junkies as they get hooked on notoriously addictive crack, as well as on heroin.

It is being linked to dealers employing supermarket-style "buy one, get one free" policies, giving away a lump of crack to addicts if they buy a certain amount on heroin - to get them hooked on a new habit.

Today, Health Minister Malcolm Chisholm, who is due to visit the centre, pledged to look into the claims, which he called "extremely concerning".

Francis Cassidy, team leader at the centre, said: "We are hearing that lots of people who use heroin are making their own crack cocaine, buying coke and doing some home chemistry to make their own crack. These people are generally using heroin but occasionally making their own crack cocaine to have a bit of a binge.

"I have heard that dealers are giving away crack now, so if you spend 40 on heroin you can get a rock [of crack] free - to get them hooked.

"I expect making crack themselves makes it cheaper and I guess the highs that you get from crack are what’s attractive, but people don’t think about the lows, the anxiety, depression and stress.

He said heroin users could be weaned on to a substitute, methadone, but there was no alternative to cocaine or crack.

"The only thing that really helps is complementary therapy, unless they go into a residential detox programme. But although complementary is bringing really good results here, it is not widely available."

Simon McLean, projects manager at Turning Point in Leith, said: "It would be interesting to look at sales of ammonia at DIY stores.

"I think it’s a hidden problem. We’ve been hearing about an increase in crack for about five years but now we’re seeing evidence."

Crack is made by cooking cocaine with ammonia and other ingredients.

DIY and gardening stores today said they were not aware of increasing sales of ammonia, but they were concerned addicts were "abusing the system".

A spokesman for Dobbies Gardening World at Lasswade, said: "We haven’t noticed an increase in sales. There is stuff on sale that drug addicts will get but it’s a question of whether you deprive the public of these items because drug addicts are abusing the system."

A spokesman for Balerno Hardware said: "We mainly sell ammonia to older people who use it to clean the grease off ovens or for cleaning windows and in the garden. I’ve never heard of it being used by addicts before and I haven’t noticed an increase in sales."

Mr Chisholm said: "I’m extremely concerned to hear of this and will be discussing it with Turning Point at the earliest opportunity."