Etomidate, a white powdery substance insoluble in water (mainly manifested as water agent and emulsion in medical treatment), has sedative-hypnotic activity, and is a short-acting non-barbiturate intravenous anesthetic, which is mainly suitable for general anesthesia induction in clinical practice, and can also be used for short-term surgical anesthesia. In recent years, some criminals have taken advantage of the anesthetic effect of etomidate to make it into "smoke powder" and "e-liquid" and add it to e-cigarettes for sale, which is extremely harmful.
It's a medicine, but it's a substitute for drugs
What are the harms of misuse?
It is drunk after smoking, and in severe cases, it can be fatal
Case 1
In June 2023, CCTV News reported a piece of news: Hainan police found during their visit and investigation that some young people in the bar will experience dizziness and drunkenness after smoking a new type of "top e-cigarette", their eyes will be blurred, their movements will be slow, some will faint on the road, some will tremble, and some will shake their entire arms up and down......
The police examined the person concerned and found that these people were behaving strangely on their bodies, as well as the expensive price of the e-cigarette, which made the anti-drug police feel abnormal.
According to the police, this e-cigarette is very addictive, and after smoking, dizziness, nausea, and even coma and convulsions will occur. The Hainan police immediately tested the e-cigarette involved in the case and found that its ingredients contained etomidate. Criminals use the narcotic effect of etomidate to sell it as a drug substitute. These young people smoked "top e-cigarettes" containing etomidate, and their performance was shocking.
Photo credit: Hainan Provincial Narcotics Control Office
During the investigation, the police found that the e-cigarettes that flowed into the local area were resold by a man from Wenchang surnamed Yang from other places. Yang's first contact with "top e-cigarettes" was heard from a friend after an episode of drug addiction. After obtaining it through illegal channels, Yang felt that the "top e-cigarette" could replace drugs, so he recruited an accomplice surnamed Yun to sell it with him. According to relevant clues, the police launched operations in many places in Hainan and arrested more than 20 suspects.
Case 2
"I took a sip, my hands trembled, I was dazed and uncomfortable, and I didn't dare to take a second puff. In a message released by the Jiangxi Provincial Public Security Bureau, two women described how they felt after smoking e-cigarettes containing etomidate.
In this short video, the two women smoked an e-cigarette one after another, and the strange behavior after smoking made many netizens suspect that the two may be taking drugs and report it to the police. The police carried out an investigation overnight, found the person concerned, and seized the e-cigarette in the video at the scene. It has been identified that the e-cigarette e-liquid contains etomidate. The police dug deep and successfully arrested the suspect Lin who was selling "top e-cigarettes" behind his back, and seized 18 unsold e-cigarettes and 1 bottle of e-liquid at the scene. The two women were also remorseful for their actions.
Cases occur frequently, and the police crack down hard
According to relevant media reports, since 2023, cases involving etomidate have occurred frequently......
Case 1
In a case of etomidate added to etomidate seized by the Hubei Provincial Police, the suspect Cai purchased about 20 grams of etomidate through the Internet, and then made e-cigarettes containing etomidate at home and sold them through others. After that, the man Le and Cai contacted and agreed to sell e-cigarettes containing etomidate together to make money. Cai is responsible for the purchase of etomidate and e-cigarette equipment and e-cigarette raw materials, and Le is responsible for making e-cigarettes in a rented house in an urban area. During this period, Cai and Le purchased etomidate, cigarette sticks, empty cartridges, etc., and made etomidate-containing e-cigarettes commonly known as "top cigarettes" and "hi cigarettes" through artificial processing, and made a profit from them.
At present, both of them are under criminal detention in accordance with the law.
Case 2
Jiangxi Provincial Police found in the work that a multi-chain criminal gang entrenched in the urban area radiating outside the province, involving upstream supply, intermediate sales, offline purchase of formulated e-cigarettes, and terminals as drug substitutes on the market for illegal profit, through the investigation of the case, the Jiangxi police arrested a total of 14 criminal suspects, seized 1.1 kg of etomidate crystals, 5 vehicles, and 512,000 yuan in cash.
At the same time, the Jiangxi Provincial Police smashed an illegal drug trafficking channel from other provinces to the province, arrested 4 suspects successively, and seized nearly 4 kilograms of etomidate powder, 6 cigarette cartridges, 2 bottles of e-liquid, 1 crime vehicle, and 300,000 yuan in cash.
Case 3
Anhui Provincial Police arrested 5 people suspected of smoking etomidate, and seized 9 grams of etomidate and 10 e-cigarette cartridges. The urine test results showed that all five people were positive. After interrogation, the five people confessed to their illegal and criminal acts and have been criminally detained by the police in accordance with the law.
Image source: Ganzhou Municipal Drug Control Office, Jiangxi Province
Cases involving etomidate have shown a frequent trend, causing serious social harm, and the police in various places have launched a severe crackdown on it.
Illegal trafficking is subject to criminal liability
From October 1, 2023, etomidate will be officially listed as a controlled psychotropic drug, and illegal smoking, smuggling, trafficking, transportation, and manufacturing of etomidate will all be treated as drug-related violations and crimes.
Case 1
After Zhang Moumou purchased etomidate from others, he sold it to Ye Moumou, Zou Moumou and others many times and made illegal profits. In 2013, the court sentenced the defendant Zhang Moumou to three years and three months in prison and a fine of 10,000 yuan for the crime of drug trafficking.
Case 2
Qian and Wu in Jiangxi Province purchased counterfeit and shoddy e-cigarettes from others for sale, and the sales amount was huge, and etomidate was detected in the e-cigarette. In December 2023, a court in Jiangxi Province sentenced the defendant Qian to two years and two months in prison and a fine of RMB 150,000 for the crime of selling counterfeit and shoddy products.
Case 3
In order to seek illegal benefits, Mo and Qin in Guizhou Province concealed the purchased etomidate in vehicles and transported it across provinces, with a quantity of 503.8 grams. A court in Guizhou Province sentenced defendants Mo Mouchuan and Qin to 15 years imprisonment, deprivation of political rights for five years, and confiscation of 50,000 yuan of property for the crime of transporting drugs.
Case 4
Chen Moumou in Hunan Province sold the remaining part of his etomidate e-cigarette cartridge after smoking to others at a price of 400 yuan each. In October 2023, Chen Moumou was arrested by the police. A court in Hunan Province made a judgment in accordance with law that the defendant Chen XX committed the crime of drug trafficking and was sentenced to 10 months imprisonment and a fine of 10,000 yuan.
Police alert
Etomidate may cause symptoms such as dizziness, unsteadiness on standing, and staggering, and may also cause immediate widespread skin redness or hives due to allergic reactions. Large-dose smoking will affect people's emotions, thinking and volitional behaviors such as temper tantrums and laziness, causing mental disorders such as paranoia, anxiety, panic, and delusions of victimization, and it is also easy to cause apnea, and in severe cases, it will cause delirium and even stroke death.
Legal Links
Article 347 of the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China
Smuggling, selling, transporting, and manufacturing narcotics, regardless of the quantity, shall be investigated for criminal responsibility and punished.
In any of the following circumstances, whoever smuggles, sells, transports, or manufactures narcotics shall be sentenced to 15 years imprisonment, life imprisonment, or death, and shall also have his property confiscated:
(1) Smuggling, selling, transporting, or manufacturing 1 kilogram or more of opium, 50 grams or more of heroin or methamphetamine, or other drugs in large quantities;
(2) The ringleaders of drug smuggling, trafficking, transporting, or manufacturing drug syndicates;
(3) Smuggling, selling, transporting, or manufacturing narcotics under armed cover;
(4) Violently resisting inspection, detention, or arrest, where the circumstances are serious;
(5) Participating in organized international drug trafficking activities.
Whoever smuggles, sells, transports, or manufactures between 200 grams and 1 kilogram of opium, between 10 grams and 50 grams of heroin or methamphetamine, or other drugs in relatively large quantities, is to be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than seven years and shall also be fined.
Whoever smuggles, sells, transports, or manufactures less than 200 grams of opium, less than 10 grams of heroin or methamphetamine, or other small amounts of narcotics, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years, short-term detention or controlled release, and shall also be fined;
Where a unit commits the crimes in paragraphs 2, 3, or 4, the unit is to be fined, and the directly responsible managers and other directly responsible personnel are to be punished in accordance with the provisions of those paragraphs.
Those who use or instigate minors to smuggle, sell, transport, or manufacture drugs, or sell drugs to minors, are to be given a heavier punishment.
For multiple smuggling, selling, transporting, or manufacturing of narcotics, the amount of narcotics that has not been processed is to be calculated cumulatively.
Drug abuse ruins your life, please stay away from e-cigarettes.
Once you find someone around you who is selling or abusing etomidate
Please call 110 to report to the public security authorities in time