Police hit road to show public the horrors of P

By ANGELA GREGORY

Two constables shouted, swore, waved around bags of methamphetamine and showed a few hundred onlookers how to snort drugs yesterday in an awareness-raising roadshow.

The pair held those attending a hui at the Hoani Waititi Marae in Glen Eden spellbound with their graphic display of the effects of the "demon" drug, best known as P.

The iwi liaison officers wanted to press home the dangers of P, which they said was causing such a rise in aggressive behaviour that police were considering routinely taking guns to domestic violence callouts.

Hui organiser Dr Pita Sharples said P, a more pure form of methamphetamine than speed, was emerging as a major social problem throughout New Zealand.

The marae leader and Maori educationist said the prevalence of P in his community alarmed him.

Dr Sharples believed abuse of the drug was now a bigger problem than alcohol and smoking. "Our kids and grandchildren are in peril."

Dr Sharples said a local parent had found P-snorting gear in the lunchbox of a 9-year-old, and three Pakeha 14-year-olds had told him of their prostitution to pay for the drug.

He told the crowd of about 300 people representing Government agencies and health bodies that P was highly addictive and a one-way street to crime and suicide. "It's a drug that makes you crazy."

To raise public awareness, marae teachers with West Auckland and North Shore Maori police liaison officers had begun a methamphetamine roadshow into the community to warn of its dangers.

Constables Andre Morris and John Cassidy yesterday outlined information about P to the hui, including showing slides of drug labs and associated hardware.

Mr Cassidy said P was cheaper and easier to buy than cocaine and could be smoked, snorted, injected, or mixed in drinks.

It could be injected in the arms, eyeballs, behind the ears, and in feet, and even the penis as a sexual stimulant.

The constables held up examples of commonly used equipment, easily bought in Auckland shopping centres, that are used to smoke P, and packets of crystal methamphetamine.

Mr Cassidy said the drug made users paranoid and aggressive. "They abuse their kids because they see the devil in their eyes ... babies with horns growing from their heads ... It is very dangerous."

As a result of P abuse, domestic incidents were "five times more violent" than before the drug hit the streets three to four years ago. "Police are considering whether they should be taking guns."

It was vital to raise public awareness of the drug. said Mr Cassidy.

After presenting information at marae he had found parents suddenly aware of what had been happening to their disappearing light bulbs - an effective smoking device for P due to their heat resistance.

Mr Cassidy said high-profile murderers had been P-users, including RSA triple killer William Bell. "He parties and smokes (P) all night then executes three people."

Methamphetamine labs were inherently dangerous due to the risk of explosions, he said.

New Zealand had already had its first death - a man who was overcome by the fumes in a home lab.

Telltale signs included phosphorous red-stained coffee filter papers in household rubbish, blacked-out windows and a strong smell described as similar to cat urine.

Mr Cassidy said the manufacture of P led to toxic wastes poured down basins, and a cost to the taxpayer of $15,000 to safely dismantle a lab.

Mr Morris said P was body- and soul-destroying. "It is a powerful synthetic stimulant which affects the central nervous system."

He said a user had said: "It can make you hate people you love and love the life and people you hate."

There was big money in making the drug from ingredients that included cough medicines, engine starter and brake fluid.

One gram of cut methamphetamine could sell for up to $200 and an ounce for up to $4000.

An ounce of pure methamphetamine could fetch up to $15,000.

Mr Morris said methamphetamine tablets called yaba, brought in from Thailand, were being made in assorted colours and fruit flavours to appeal to children.