A 27-year-old Columbian male was arrested in Aix la Chapelle at the border to Belgium, as he was suspected, of smuggling drugs in his body. Ultrasonographic and radiographic examinations revealed numerous packets in the colon descendens and the ampulla recti. After administration of laxatives, 70 packets were excreted that had been swallowed 3 days before in Bogota, Columbia. Each packet consisted of two rubber bags that were separately knotted with cord, layers of plastic foil, two further knotted rubber bags; the pressed core of cocaine was an average 3.8 cm in length, 1.9 cm in diameter, and 10.2 g in weight. The cocaine hydrochloride content ranged from 75.7% to 100%, with an average of 81.9%. The total net weight came to 714 g. Urine analysis revealed no cocaine metabolites, but metamizole and metamizole metabolites were present as a result of administration of Buscopan compositum during the flight to prevent premature excretion of the packets.

The situation in the region of Aix la Chapelle with its borders towards The Netherlands and Belgium has presented us with increasing problems in drug and narcotic delinquency during recent years. Because of the revised law on narcotic drugs in 1982 and recent decisions by the German Federal Supreme Court, forensic toxicologists are expected not only to define drugs qualitatively as well as quantitatively, but also to provide expertise on problems of effective doses, pharmacokinetics, toxicity and tolerance development with various narcotic drugs. Based on our own experience in this special forensic field, as well as on the data compiled by investigation authorities, our analytical findings are presented with regard to toxicological interpretation and the legal consequences.

During the period of survey, the number of narcotic drug seizures by the law, especially cannabis resin, has increased considerably. The details on this development are presented. The following main analytical results were obtained: the median concentration of THC in cannabis resin has increased up to 8.6%, in cannabis plants the THC content has fluctuated between 1% and 3%. In the heroin samples since 1982, diamorphin has predominated in the base form; the diamorphin content had dropped to 32%, which is connected with a rise simultaneous in the concentration of noscapine (up to 9%). The concentration of cocaine hydrochloride had diminished at the end of the period to 62%; on the other hand, the amphetamine sulfate content increased to 69%. LSD trips used from 10 to 120 micrograms per trip. Methadone occurred mostly in the form of tablets containing 5 mg methadone hydrochloride.

Five cadavers were exhumed 8 months to 20 years after burial, as it was suspected that these persons had been poisoned with E 605. Parathion at doses of between 200 mg and 500 mg might have been administered. Parathion, aminoparathion, paraoxon, p-nitrophenol, and a decomposition product of CI solvent blue 78 (Ceresblau) were found 9 months after burial, and aminoparathion and p-nitrophenol could be detected 3 and 7 years after burial. Neither parathion nor its degradation products were found in postmortem samples 13 and 20 years after burial. As secondary findings, barbital was detected in specimens 20 years after burial. The analytical findings were confirmed by GLC mass spectrometry.

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