14/10/2020: Laughing gas ‘can cause paralysis’, warns Wales’ top doctor

Laughing gas is “not just a bit of harmless fun” and can cause paralysis, Wales’ chief medical officer has warned. Nitrous oxide – as it is also known – is the second most commonly used recreational . . . drug in the UK after cannabis for those aged 16-24. Chief medical officer Dr Frank Atherton said the costs of misuse can be “astronomical”. “We see people who are no longer able to walk or use their arms or legs.”
BBC

05/10/2020: Police issue urgent drugs warning after four young people die over weekend

An urgent drugs warning has been issued by police after the deaths of four young people in the North East over the weekend. Drugs were suspected to have contributed to the deaths of two 18-year-old . . . women and a 21-year-old man in Newcastle, as well as an 18-year-old man in Washington, Northumbria Police said. Post-mortems are due to take place, but the force wants to warn the public about the dangers of taking drugs.
Sky

23/09/2020: Dark web drugs raid leads to 179 arrests

Police forces around the world have seized more than $6.5m (£5m) in cash and virtual currencies, as well as drugs and guns in a co-ordinated raid on dark web marketplaces. Some 179 people were . . . arrested across Europe and the US, and 500kg (1,102lb) of drugs and 64 guns confiscated. It ends the “golden age” of these underground marketplaces, Europol said. “The hidden internet is no longer hidden”, said Edvardas Sileris, head of Europol’s cyber-crime centre.
BBC