It circulates under the names “tusi”, “tusibi”, “pink powder”, “pink panther”, “chinese coke” or “cocaina rosada”.
A cute name for a product that is much less cute. At the beginning of September, the Spanish authorities seized a large quantity of synthetic drugs never before found in the country: more than a million ecstasy pills were confiscated as well as several kilos of “pink cocaine” or “pink cocaine” in French. , a drug that has recently appeared in Europe (notably in Spain (especially Ibiza) and in England). In France, it has been circulating under the names “tusi”, “tusibi”, “pink powder”, “pink panther”, “chinese coke” or “cocaina rosada” since 2021 in clubs or rave parties in the form of snorting powder or pills to swallow.
Contrary to what its name suggests, pink cocaine does not contain cocaine. It is a mixture of several synthetic drugs such as MDMA (ecstasy), ketamine and sometimes 2c-B, thus combining the effects of all drugs: psychedelics, sedatives, hallucinogens and stimulants with fluctuating intensity . Its exact composition remains unpredictable, which makes it all the more dangerous. “It is the unpredictability of the content that contributes to its dangerousness” summarizes the President of the Addiction Federation to 20minutes.fr.
Users actually think they are taking a stimulant similar to cocaine, whereas its ketamine content gives it dissociative effects, that is to say it can induce a state of dissociation between body and mind in in which the person is aware of what is happening, but does not feel physically or emotionally involved. Like a feeling of “exiting one’s own body” and an insensitivity to pain. “I didn’t know at all what it was, it was one of my regular salespeople who gave me a sample, describing it as “cocaine for the rich” And there I found myself in a state! Worse than the K [kétamine]like K but which doesn’t stop […] You think you’re getting through it but no, it’s starting again”, says a 30-year-old user, cited in a report from the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regional Health Agency.
“In view of the stimulating effects potentially sought by users, misled by the name of the product and the sellers’ speech, the dissociative hallucinogenic effects of ketamine can lead to unexpected complications for the user. (including breathing difficulties, delusions and loss of consciousness which can lead to coma or even overdose, editor’s note)”, explains the French Observatory of Drugs and Addictive Tendencies (OFDT) in February 2024 which observes an increasingly significant risk of poisoning.
In addition to its hazardous composition and its risks of overdose, this synthetic drug poses several problems: it particularly appeals to young populations due to its pink color obtained using food colorings and its “strawberry tagada”, “banana” or “passion” flavor. . In addition, it is difficult to detect by standard screening tests. It remains expensive but “accessible” (between 60 and 100 euros per gram).
A legal drug? From a legal point of view, there is some vagueness. Pink cocaine does not yet appear to be included on the list of narcotics, but the substances that make it up (in theory) are illegal and their use (consumed alone or in a mixture) is strictly prohibited. Buying it, consuming it, possessing it, giving it away, reselling it, producing it, transporting it or driving after having consumed it are all violations of the law, punishable by criminal sanctions, regardless of the quantity of product incriminated.