Hong Kong police bust HK$1 million ‘space oil’ drug laboratory based in flat
“Police have closed it down and prevented the controlled drug from hitting the market,” an insider said.
It was the first time police in the area had discovered a space oil operation based in a flat.
Inspector Au Kai-lun of the Tseung Kwan O special duties squad said equipment found in the flat included an induction hob, pots, an electronic scale, and a large amount of empty capsules.
“This marks the first time police have discovered a residential flat in the district which has been used to produce “space oil” electronic cigarette capsules from powdered etomidate,” Au said.
Another source added etomidate, a class A poison, was relatively new to the city and that police had logged 23 cases seizures in the first six months of the year.
The insider explained the drug was often concealed in electronic cigarette capsules so drug users could smoke it to get high.
Police broke up the operation after they intercepted two men, aged 24 and 29, in an intelligence-led sting on Lohas Park Road in Tseung Kwan O on Tuesday.
Officers seized 100 capsules suspected to contain etomidate from one of the two.
Au said the laboratory was set up in a flat in Tseung Kwan O about a month ago.
He added the two men were detained on suspicion of possession of a class A drug – an offence punishable by up to two years in prison and a HK$100,000 fine.
Officers also arrested the 29-year-old girlfriend of the older man. She was found to have rented the flat about a month ago.
Au said etomidate had legitimate uses in medicine for anaesthesia and sedation.
“It is commonly used to keep patients anaesthetised during surgical procedures and is highly addictive,” he said.
He warned that an overdose could lead to hallucinations, emotional disturbance and irreversible damage to the brain and nervous system.
It can also cause bronchial spasms and even respiratory arrest.
Police said the three suspects had been released on bail and that investigations continued.