Though the import of e-cigarettes and vapes is banned in Bangladesh, the market for these products is booming, with young people becoming increasingly addicted. Despite the ban, the government has recently granted permission to the multinational cigarette company Philip Morris to produce nicotine pouches.In this context, the Department of Narcotics Control (DNC) Bangladesh has raised concerns over a new drug, MDMB, being sold through vapes and e-cigarettes. On social media platforms, including Facebook, young people were promoting the MDMB drug. Four individuals have been arrested by the DNC for their involvement. The leading national daily, Prothom Alo, published a report on this matter on 13 December, which is reproduced here.
” Vapes and E-Cigarettes Spread New Drug MDMB in Bangladesh, Says Department of Narcotics Control
Staff Correspondent, Dhaka
A new drug called MDMB has spread in the country through vapes and e-cigarettes. The Department of Narcotics Control (DNC) said that this is the first time the drug has been detected in Bangladesh. The DNC has seized a large consignment of MDMB and reported the arrest of four members of the syndicate, including the main mastermind.
According to the DNC, the drug used to come from Malaysia. The syndicate used Facebook and WhatsApp as an “invisible market.”
This information was disclosed at a press conference held on Friday morning at the auditorium of the Department of Narcotics Control in Segunbagicha, Dhaka. The Director General of the DNC, Md. Hasan Maruf, shared these details at the press conference.
The four arrested individuals are: private university student Khandaker Toukirul Kabir Tamim (26), Mehedi Hasan Rakib (26), Masum Mashfikur Rahman alias Sahos (27), who works as a sales and marketing officer at a private company, and Ashraful Islam (25), who recently completed his studies in India and started a business in Bangladesh. From them, officials recovered 340 ml of MDMB, cannabis chocolates mixed with CBD, vape devices used to consume MDMB, e-liquid containing MDMB, and empty canisters prepared for sale.
Hasan Maruf said that although e-cigarettes and vapes usually contain nicotine or tobacco products, recently new types of psychoactive substances (NPS), opioids, and the dangerous drug MDMB are being mixed into them. MDMB is a highly dangerous liquid synthetic drug; even a few drops can severely damage the nervous system. The drug quickly creates addiction and can cause hallucinations, aggressive behavior, and abnormal heart rhythms.
Regarding the method of marketing, Hasan Maruf said the syndicate secretly used Facebook and WhatsApp as an invisible marketplace. They sold drugs through coded posts in Facebook closed groups, review pages, and fake accounts. Interested buyers would send messages to inboxes, after which prices and delivery were finalized through WhatsApp chats. Transactions were completed using location sharing, live tracking, and special emojis, so ordinary users could not understand that it involved drugs.
Cases have been filed against the arrested individuals under the Narcotics Control Act, 2018.”
News Source: https://www.prothomalo.com/bangladesh/crime/hcbbo8ss3e?
