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The powerful prescription pill, available only in Russia, has been linked to a number of deaths here.
With recent attention focused on the increased use of cocaine, heroin, and crystal meth, these illicit pills are flooding the streets along with others.
They are a type of benzodiazepine—sedatives used to treat epilepsy, insomnia, and anxiety—but are even more deadly.
This is because they are mixed with other drugs, making them a deadly cocktail.
The Russian pills are called phenazepam, a name not familiar to many as they are called ‘benzos’, ‘downers’ or ‘blues’ on the street.
A slow-release, highly potent psychoactive substance developed in the Eastern Bloc in the early 70s, it is the most widely used tranquilizer, up to 10 times more potent than diazepam.
“All of these drugs ultimately work to do one thing – slow down a person’s breathing, induce a coma, and cause death,” Coroner Joe McCrisken said.
“Phenazepam is a strong, long-acting benzodiazepine. It’s only prescribed in Russia. It’s not prescribed in the UK and it’s not prescribed in Western Europe, but I’ve seen an increase in deaths with phenazepam.
It comes in pill, powder or liquid form, making it even more dangerous when addicts grind it up to snort it or inject it with a needle for maximum kick.
Another drug on the radar is etizolam, which is commonly used to treat various anxiety disorders and is only available in Tokyo, India and Italy.
Both it and phenazepam fall under the umbrella of psychoactive substances, and the number of deaths from these drugs has risen from 11 to 51 in two years.
They are widely available on the dark web and on the street, with large bulk purchase deals.
One addict we spoke to would take up to 28 of these pills a day, sometimes more – heroin and cocaine.
We’ve named him Jason to protect his identity.
“When you’re on coke, it’s hard to sleep and you get really jittery, so you get downs,” he says.
“When you’re there [feeling a hit]your heart is beating, so you have to wait a while before taking them, otherwise you might act on your heart.
“Those who were ordering online were on the street. It just wasn’t enough to deal with anxiety and panic attacks. [I was] to burst.
“I went to the site and posted them. It’s like a bank transfer to an offshore account, £40 for 28 tablets plus recorded delivery.
When Jason was 12 years old, he started using drugs. Over the past 30 years, he has been rehabilitated several times and is hoping to recover.
“I’ve been clean a few times but you always go back. You know the danger, but you don’t listen.”
“You think you’re invincible. Even when people start coming down [dead), it still doesn’t sink in.”
Drug deaths in Northern Ireland are at their highest level in a decade, with people living in deprived areas five times more likely to lose their lives.
The last official figures, dating back to 2020, confirmed 218 deaths that year, with some people taking up to 10 types of drug.
The official death toll for last year is expected to be even higher — and higher again by the time this year ends.
“The situation is escalating. I don’t see something coming that is going to turn the tide. That is depressing,’’ says Mr McCrisken.
“I very much take my job as a death investigator. It’s not necessarily getting involved in the emotion of the situation, but getting answers and providing a family with those answers.
“But every now and again, I take a look at the country and the city [Belfast] Where I grew up, it’s a very different place.
“I have kids, and if anyone thinks this problem isn’t theirs and doesn’t affect them, think again.”
A senior police officer recently revealed that there are 68 organized crime gangs in Northern Ireland whose main business is drug trafficking, running the gamut from heroin to prescription pills and cannabis.
In June, the PSNI put on display an array of illegal prescription drugs bought online and destined for the streets of Northern Ireland, only to be seized at the post. About a quarter of a million tablets were seized as part of the operation, known as Operation Pangea.
Although significant progress has been made in the fight against drugs, what has been stopped is perceived as only a fraction of what is being passed.
Those working on the ground are fighting fires, particularly at the epicenter of the crisis that has engulfed Belfast.
Pastor Brian Madden says: “These pills are coming from all over Belfast and they seem to get in easily.”
“I spoke to a young man this morning. He is taking 10,300 mg tablets a day. If you or I took one of those pills, we’d be screwed. He’s been taking 10 every day for two years and it’s costing him a blind fortune to pay them off.
“A gram of heroin currently costs around £40. Benzos I think they are £20 each.
“If you get 10 of them, that’s £200 a day, they’ll do anything to survive – crime and the girls sell themselves. Addiction brings you so low.’
Pastor Madden, who runs an outreach center in the heart of the city, is not surprised that powerful pills banned in the United States are on our streets.
He does not believe that restrictions on Russian exports due to the war in Ukraine will do anything to curb the phenazepam problem.
“I don’t think it will make any difference. There’s a lot going around,” he told Sunday Life.
“The biggest annoyance for me is when people say ‘no help’. There is help. We recommend rehab to every addict we meet. Most addicts don’t want help. It’s scary to say that.
“I work with people and go to their homes. They carry out transfers over the Internet. They pay via Paypal and deliver by taxi [pills] to their front door. This is crazy.
“We had 18 deaths in a few months. Nobody talks about it now, but they did a couple of months ago. He went very, very quietly.
“People have moved on in life. People look at people with addiction and ask, “Why would we want to waste our resources on those people?” they think.
“It sounds difficult, but that’s what people think.
“We will destroy. You win some, you lose some. In fact, we are losing more than we are winning.”
POLICE ON NI PILLS PROBLEM
Police chiefs fear Russian pills flooding Northern Ireland’s black market and are doing everything they can to tackle the problem here.
Detective Chief Inspector Ciara Mullan confirmed that the ‘benzo’ Etizolam, which is only available in Tokyo, India and Italy, is also being targeted as a misuse of illegal prescription drug rockets.
“Unfortunately, various benzodiazepines and opioid pain relievers have been associated with drug-related deaths,” he said.
“There are a number of issues. For example, people may take prescription pills in a way that their doctor did not recommend. In other words, they can be “recharged” from street dealers or bought online. It can be addictive and of course very dangerous.
“But besides that, a very serious problem is fake pills – they’re not pills. Often, when seizures are made from benzodiazepines or opioids, we find various compounds in it.
“In the past, we seized a large quantity of diazepam and during the inspection it was found that they contained a psychoactive substance. These drugs are not only made in illegal laboratories in the UK, but also come from Asia.
In a separate development, campaigners calling for the introduction of safe injection rooms which they claim will “save lives” have been dealt a major blow to Belfast within weeks of their opening.
But this is a decision that can only be made at Westminster and has been overruled by the Home Office, which works closely with the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs.
“We have no plans to introduce drug use rooms in the UK. While operating such facilities, both service users and staff commit a number of offences, such as possession of a controlled drug or knowingly allowing a controlled drug to be supplied on the premises,” a spokesperson told Sunday Life.
Scotland, which has one of the highest drug rates in Europe, wanted to introduce safe drinking rooms but was recently rejected by the UK government.
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