The Czech Republic Annual Report 2010 Drug ... - Drogy-info.cz

medicines from Germany, Slovakia, and Vietnam have also been reported. The reduced sales of medicines
containing pseudoephedrine in Czech pharmacies after the control measures were introduced in May 2009 are
shown in Figure 10-1.
Figure 10-1: Development of the sales of medicines containing pseudoephedrine in the Czech Republic from 2007 to
Q1/2011 (Státní ústav pro kontrolu léčiv, 2011).
The supply of cocaine and demand for the drug has been increasing in the whole of Europe. Cocaine has become a
common stimulant in the Czech Republic, in particular in the recreational and nightlife settings in Prague, as well as
in other locations, such as Ostrava, where it is mainly distributed by Albanian-speaking persons. Its import and
distribution are mainly pursued by West Africans (predominantly Nigerians), in addition to ethnic Albanians,
Romanians, and Bulgarians. The drugs are smuggled in the body cavities of the couriers (swallowers). The couriers
import cocaine into the Czech Republic, mainly from Western European countries such as the Netherlands, the
United Kingdom, Spain, and France, but there has been an increasing number of cases of cocaine trafficking via
Greece, Bulgaria, and Romania. Cocaine is often smuggled in postal consignments, where it is concealed in goods
in a sophisticated way.
As far as heroin is concerned, the Czech Republic is both a consumer and (especially) a transit country for the drug,
according to the National Drug Headquarters. The importation of heroin into the Czech Republic is mainly organised
by Kosovo and Macedonian Albanians. The demand on the Czech market is satisfied through small shipments (of
under 10 kg), which are diluted (most typically with paracetamol and caffeine) before sale to the end users; the purity
of street-level heroin is 5–10%. Tablets of the Subutex ® and Suboxone ® substitution preparations continue to appear
on the black market and compete with heroin; see also the chapter on Opiate Substitution Treatment (p. 60).
Trafficking in Subutex ® and Suboxone ® was reported from South Bohemia, among other regions. Opiates are most
commonly trafficked in Prague, where persons from the Roma community are also involved in the distribution of
heroin and Subutex ® , dealing these substances within this ethnic group. Both ethnic Roma and Vietnamese
participate in the distribution of heroin in the South Moravia, Zlín, and Vysočina regions.
According to the available data, ecstasy is not produced in the Czech Republic and is instead imported, mainly from
the Netherlands, Poland, and Slovakia. This most commonly involves individual imports of dozens (up to hundreds)
of tablets by means of public international surface and air transport. In the Czech Republic, ecstasy is subsequently
sold at open-air festivals, in music clubs, and at rock concerts and dance parties. However, ecstasy has become
scarcer on the drug market because of the low demand, which is mainly caused by the fact that ecstasy tablets
contain mostly mCPP rather than MDMA and its derivatives. Ecstasy is usually imported to the regions by seasonal
workers coming to work; this mainly concerns people from Poland and Slovakia. Compared to the previous year, the
price of ecstasy tablets dropped significantly, and there have even been cases reported of one tablet being sold for
CZK 20 (€ 0,8).
10.1.1 New Drugs on the Czech Drug Scene
An increase occurred in the Czech Republic in 2010 in terms of the occurrence of substances referred to as legal
highs, new drugs, new synthetic drugs, or designer drugs (NSDs). They are synthetic substances whose effects are
similar to those of traditional drugs (pervitin, marijuana, ecstasy, hallucinogens, etc.) but which are not scheduled as
illicit substances and, as such, are not subject to the international and national drug control systems. These NSDs
are predominantly imported from Asian countries. They are mostly synthetic cannabinoids, i.e. a group of substances
identified as, for example, JWH, HU, or AM, which also occur as a part of herbal mixtures sold as aromatic agents or
fumigants (referred to as Spice); there are also cathinones (e.g. mephedrone), phenetylamines (amphetamine or
methamphetamine derivatives), piperazines, or herbal extracts with a purposely increased active substance content
(e.g. Salvia divinorum). NSDs are usually sold through e-shops; a total of 21 web shops offering NSDs in Czech or
with a Czech domain name were identified in May and June 2011 (Kmetonyová, 2011). The offer of some of them
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