There are illegal elements inducing young people to smoke, be careful! This type of "upper end e-cigarette" is a new type of drug
Not long ago, the police in Yangxin County, Hubei Province, discovered a case of selling "upper head electronic cigarettes". The police seized 125 e-cigarette cartridges containing etomidate and 23 e-cigarette sticks at the scene.
It is understood that the appearance of this "top electronic cigarette" is not easy to distinguish from ordinary electronic cigarettes, but criminals have added synthetic cannabinoids and other components to electronic cigarette oil, which is actually a new type of drug.
Some criminals use various methods to induce young people to smoke "upper head e-cigarettes", which deserves high vigilance. Multiple regions such as Guangxi, Guangdong, Qinghai, and Shandong have launched actions to crack down on related crimes.
Multiple cases of "upper end electronic cigarettes"
At the beginning of this year, the Qinnan Branch of the Qinzhou Public Security Bureau in Guangxi received a report from the public that someone was selling "upper end electronic cigarettes" in the urban area. After receiving the report, the police arrested three smokers, seized two cigarette sticks and three cigarette bombs after smoking, and arrested Huang Moumou along the line. Huang was sentenced to three months of detention and fined 3000 yuan by the Qinnan District People's Court for committing the crime of drug trafficking. He also confiscated two tools and mobile phones used in the crime.
Recently, the People's Court of Ruichang City, Jiangxi Province, tried a case of "post-2000 generation" selling "top electronic cigarettes" to minors. Defendants Wang and Ke were sentenced to four years in prison; The People's Court of Tianxin District, Changsha City, Hunan Province has tried a case of "upper head electronic cigarette", and the defendant Xiao, born in 2000, was sentenced to six months in prison
Ouyang Xiaojin, the presiding judge of the Criminal Trial Division of Qinnan District People's Court in Qinzhou City, said that new drugs dressed in fashionable and trendy clothing have strong deceptive effects. Some teenagers and young people who have just entered society, either lack discernment or cannot resist temptation, often take the habit of smoking "upper head e-cigarettes" as a fashionable and personalized way of life, and often go astray.
New drug crimes present new characteristics
The investigation by reporters found that under the coordinated efforts of various departments to combat and control the spread of new drugs, the situation has been greatly curbed, but there are still criminals who take risks to make huge profits. Police in multiple regions have stated that the current type of crime has the following characteristics:
——The criminal mode of "Internet plus+logistics delivery+electronic payment".
The Beijing Higher People's Court reported that the networked means of drug-related crimes are obvious, nearly 70% of drug-related criminal transactions are implemented on the Internet, and non-contact methods such as "Internet plus+logistics delivery+electronic payment" are common, which makes it more difficult to collect evidence and investigate cases.
Industry insiders introduce that criminals use social media platforms such as WeChat to contact and transact, and then rely on logistics services such as express delivery and flash delivery to ship and transport goods. The People's Court of Haiyan County, Zhejiang Province once ruled on a case where a running errand boy exclusively delivered "upper head electronic cigarettes". The running errand boy sold drugs to 18 households through mail, running errands, and other means, and sold them 255 times. According to research conducted by reporters, "online transactions" make the buying and selling of new drugs more covert and have a wider range of influence. Generally, both buyers and sellers use hidden language and code language for communication.
——Concealed "circle trading".
The reporter learned through interviews that people who sell new types of drugs often engage in offline transactions through acquaintances. Sun Lingling, Vice President of the Beijing Higher People's Court, said that since 2020, among the 1143 drug criminals punished in accordance with the law, the proportion of recidivists is 48.2%, and more than 60% of them have committed drug trafficking.
Li Yang, the presiding judge of the Criminal Division of the Intermediate People's Court of Chongzuo City, Guangxi, said that drugs such as "Shangtou e-cigarettes" are frequently sold across provinces, and drug traffickers distribute them layer by layer through online transactions.
Strengthen the full chain strike
Starting from July 1, 2021, China officially classified synthetic cannabinoids and other new psychoactive substances, which means that all varieties of synthetic cannabinoids belong to the legal category of drugs. Police in many areas have stated that "upper end e-cigarettes" have become an important tool for drug-related activities.
Li Yang and others stated that relevant departments should actively trace the source, carry out special actions from time to time, investigate and punish illegal acts of selling electronic cigarettes to minors in accordance with the law, and strictly investigate and punish illegal criminal cases of adding new drugs such as synthetic cannabinoids to electronic cigarette oil, implementing a full chain crackdown.
Industry insiders said that with the development of Internet technology, logistics industry and online payment platform, drug crimes have gradually formed the characteristics of mailing in the circulation link, and logistics practitioners and mail recipients may also become a part of the crime chain.
"We should continue to strengthen the supervision of postal security and network supervision." Ouyang Xiaojin said that in response to the drug crime model of "network+delivery", regular spot checks should be carried out. For industries such as express delivery, multiple measures such as inspection, blocking, interception, and control should be taken together to block the sales channels of "high-end e-cigarettes".
In addition, it is necessary to increase the anti drug publicity for new drugs, and improve the public's awareness and ability to recognize, prevent, and reject drugs. Professor Yang Hongwen from the Law School of Guangxi University for Nationalities said that the governance of new drug crimes should not only rely on post event crackdowns, but also strengthen prevention and guide the public to fully recognize the harm of new drugs. Relevant departments should strengthen anti drug propaganda, and society, schools, and families should form a joint force of education and management to popularize relevant legal knowledge to young people.
