Drug users more vulnerable after drug busts: B.C. researcher

This past week, the RCMP in Prince George announced it had performed its biggest drug bust in the detachment’s history – seizing 40 kilograms of illicit drugs, including fentanyl and cocaine.

However, researchers suggest drug users themselves will be the ones who suffer.

Typically, announcements about drug raids are done with much fan-fare and accompanying pictures, meant to show the public that the streets are safer with the materials confiscated and the traffickers arrested.

But drug user advocates argue the opposite is often true, explaining that drug users become more vulnerable after a major drug bust.

Tyson Singh Kelsall, a Simon Fraser University PhD student studying the opioid crisis and drug user advocate, explains what happens on the streets after a drug raid.

“When we confiscate drugs from the supply, we are decreasing the amount of supply without any corresponding change in the demand,” Kelsall told 1130 NewsRadio.

Kelsall points to studies that show toxic drug deaths actually increase after a drug bust.

He says that’s because users are forced to look for different suppliers after a raid, which may lead them to buy drugs from less reliable, and safe, sources.

“It’s not making a dent in the war on drugs. The demand is going to stay there. People don’t stop using fentanyl overnight. And people have always used drugs throughout human history,” he explained.

“There’s not been a big change in the amount of drug use in British Columbia, over the last 50 years.”

In a statement, the Surrey Union of Drug Users’ Research Committee echoed Kelsall, saying the risk increases when seizures occur but no extra supports are given to drug users.

“This means there may be a temporary increase in street prices, and decreased access for people who use substances. In response, people may turn to a lesser known source, a significant risk factor for overdose,” SUDU said.

“All this occurs while there is no extra support provided for people who use drugs and whose purchasing market is suddenly destabilized.”