Parent speaks out with speed, opioids and addictive pharmaceuticals being peddled to Derry people online

The father, who does not wish to be named but has worked in addiction services for decades, spoke to the ‘Journal’ after his daughter received an unsolicited approach from a drug dealer this week.

The young woman was offered a smorgasbord of dangerous and addictive drugs for sale. The social media account of the dealer, which has been seen by the ‘Journal’, showed depressants including benzodiazepines, the opioid methadone, and stimulants including dexamfetamine suplhate - a form of ‘speed’ - among the drugs available on demand.

“A lot of names it was being shared with are local. I’d say if you went in there and said you wanted a, b and c it would be delivered to your door pretty quickly.

“My concern is that these are gateway drugs for a lot of young people and a lot of the drugs can be pretty lethal,” the anxious parent told this paper.

The man, who has been working in addiction services for 25 years, believes the misuse of controlled pharmaceutical drugs is a growing problem in Derry.

“What do the cops think about it? What is being done about these sites? They should be shut down straight away,” he said.

“This is underhand stuff on the internet and it is young people who are being drawn in. It’s almost like a fishing trip for these boys to see who they can get on the hook,” he added.