The Criminal Investigation Bureau yesterday said it is cracking down on “zombie vapes,” with a three-month drug sweep seizing products with a street value of NT$260 million (US$8.13) amid a push for the government to impose more severe punishments for drug-impaired driving.
From July to last month, the National Police Agency recorded 681 incidents of use or possession by 767 people of so-called “zombie vapes” containing etomidate, Criminal Investigation Bureau Director-General Chou Yu-wei (周幼偉) said.
Eighteen drug packaging sites were discovered and dismantled, and ingredients to produce cartridges worth more than NT$260 million were seized, he said, adding that some suspects have links to organized crime.
Photo: CNA
“Zombie vapes” are made from etomidate, a type of central nervous system depressant that can induce anesthesia, Chou said, adding that users experience muscle tremors and dizziness.
Etomidate is mixed with organic solvents along with other substances that have a similar chemical structure, then fruit flavors are added to produce vape cartridges priced at NT$2,000 each on social media, he said.
The agency’s analysis showed that most etomidate in Taiwan comes from Cambodia, where it is gathered from pharmacies in Southeast Asian nations before being shipped to Taiwan via air freight in the guise of other chemicals or medications, he said.
The smuggled etomidate is then taken to secret sites, where it is packaged into vape cartridges, Chou said.
Due to the adverse effects of “zombie vapes,” the bureau began to clamp down on etomidate in July and incorporated the measure into its teenager protection project over the summer vacation, before the drug was listed as a Category 3 narcotic on Aug. 5, he said.
From July to last month, police seized a total of 7,540 etomidate-based cartridges, 2.7kg of e-liquid, 11.1kg of drug powders and seven vehicles for criminal use, as well as cash totaling NT$6.93 million, Chou said.
While 183 incidents involved 239 drug suppliers who were possessing or transferring the drug to sell it, 498 incidents involved 528 people who possessing or used the drug, he said.
Meanwhile, the government has been under pressure to impose more severe punishments for drug-impaired driving following the killing of New Taipei City Police Chief Liu Tsung-hsin (劉宗鑫) by a driver earlier this week.
Laws have not kept up with new forms of synthetic drugs, so stronger prison sentences are needed as a deterrent, National Police Agency Director-General Chang Jung-hsin (張榮興) said on Thursday.
Chang when meeting Liu’s family on Tuesday lauded him as a model police officer, and said he would request the maximum amount of government compensation of NT$40 million to which the family of an officer who dies in the line of duty is entitled.
Liu, chief of Chingshui Police Station in Tucheng District (土城), was killed when conducting a roadside check on Monday.
He had stopped a motorist surnamed Chen (陳), who slammed on the accelerator, pushing Liu about 500m before ramming him into a construction site fence.
Chen, 30, fled the scene and was later arrested at a friend’s house.
Initial tests indicated she had ingested amphetamine and etomidate, and had vape cartridges in her possession.
She also had a past conviction for drug use.
New Taipei City prosecutors are investigating possible charges of homicide, illegal drug use and obstruction of official duties.
Citing the separate death in June of Sanchong Precinct police officer Huang Wei-chen (黃煒震), also caused by a driver under the influence of etomidate, Chang requested that the government raise the punishments for new synthetic drugs.
Chang also said that the agency would mandate new training for officers to remind them of uncertainties they might face in the line of duty.
The Ministry of the Interior last month amended the law to make the families of law enforcement officers eligible to receive state compensation after their family member was “violently killed by an offender” while in the line of duty, the agency said in a statement on Tuesday.
Eight police officers were killed in the line of duty in both 2021 and 2022. Ten were killed last year and three deaths occurred this year from January to August, agency data showed.
Additional reporting by Chen Cheng-yu
Japan has deployed long-range missiles in a southwestern region near China, the Japanese defense minister said yesterday, at a time when ties with Beijing are at their lowest in recent years. The missiles were installed in Kumamoto in the southern region of Kyushu, as Japan is attempting to shore up its military capacity as China steps up naval activity in the East China Sea. “Standoff defense capabilities enable us to counter the threat of enemy forces attempting to invade our country ... while ensuring the safety of our personnel,” Japanese Minister of Defense Shinjiro Koizumi said. “This is an extremely important initiative for
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) today accepted an invitation from Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) to lead a delegation to China next month, saying she hopes to promote the peaceful development of cross-strait relations and bring stability to the Taiwan Strait. “I am grateful and happy to accept this invitation,” Cheng said in a statement from the KMT chairperson’s office. Cheng said she hopes both sides can work together to promote the peaceful development of cross-strait relations, enhance exchange and cooperation, bring stability to the Taiwan Strait and improve people’s livelihoods. At today's news conference, Cheng said any efforts to
MORE POPULAR: Taiwan Pass sales increased by 59 percent during the first quarter compared with the same period last year, the Tourism Administration said The Tourism Administration yesterday said that it has streamlined the Taiwan Pass, with two versions available for purchase beginning today. The tourism agency has made the pass available to international tourists since 2024, allowing them to access the high-speed rail, Taiwan Railway Corp services, four MRT systems and four Taiwan Tourist Shuttles. Previously, five types of Taiwan Pass were available, but some tourists have said that the offerings were too complicated. The agency said only two types of Taiwan Pass would be available, starting from a three-day pass with the high-speed rail and a three-day pass with Taiwan Railway Corp. The former costs NT$2,800
The nation’s fastest supercomputer, Nano 4 (晶創26), is scheduled to be launched in the third quarter, and would be used to train large language models in finance and national defense sectors, the National Center for High-Performance Computing (NCHC) said. The supercomputer, which would operate at about 86.05 petaflops, is being tested at a new cloud computing center in the Southern Taiwan Science Park in Tainan. The exterior of the server cabinet features chip circuitry patterns overlaid with a map of Taiwan, highlighting the nation’s central position in the semiconductor industry. The center also houses Taiwania 2, Taiwania 3, Forerunner 1 and
RSS