Police adopt early warning kit for dangerous drugs

Police across the South West have started to use technology that acts as an early warning system for dangerous drugs.

Devon and Cornwall Police worked with a team of chemists to develop the handheld devices which detect dangerous synthetic drugs in real time and can save help save lives.

The force's drug expert Nick Burnett and his team worked with Team Harm Reduction, a group of scientists from across the UK and beyond, on the technology.

The team was awarded the Royal Society of Chemistry Analytical Science Horizon Prize for its work.

The scientists said the portable devices identify lethal synthetic substances within seconds, enabling police and prison officers to warn vulnerable drug users immediately about potentially fatal drugs.

The team said the technology had also proven critical in detecting synthetic drugs hidden in e-cigarettes and vapes which are putting young people in particular at risk.

Team Harm Reduction is a multi-institutional team spanning Bath, Bristol, Glasgow and Manchester Metropolitan universities, Devon and Cornwall Police and international partners.

Ch Supt Sheon Sturland of Devon and Cornwall Police said he was "extremely proud" of the force's drug team regarding its work on the technology.

He said: "Devon and Cornwall Police is at the forefront of using this technology to give timely warnings of dangerous synthetic drug contaminates in circulation, and alongside our work to stop the flow of drugs into our region.

"It is invaluable in safeguarding vulnerable people."

The force has also started using the devices to test for cannabinoids in vapes, commonly known as Spice, he added.

Mr Burnett said: "From a law enforcement side, having this technology has allowed us to work collaboratively with our drug treatment service and drug users to test drugs.

"It has allowed us to build bridges so that we are not thinking just about prosecution, but also keeping the user demographic safe and preventing avoidable drug-related deaths."

This year more than 60 individuals and teams from across the chemical sciences were awarded Horizon Prizes for a variety of scientific discoveries and innovations over the past 12 months.

Follow BBC Cornwall on X, Facebook and Instagram. Follow BBC Devon on X, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected].