Academics help thwart cocaine smugglers

YORKSHIRE universities are helping to thwart smugglers by developing a new way of detecting cocaine which has been dissolved into bottles of liquid.

Research by academics from both Leeds and Bradford universities has found a technique which can be used to identify the class A drug in bottles of wine or rum – without needing to open the containers.

The study, which has been published today, used laser lights – known as Raman spectroscopy in order to detect molecules of cocaine.

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The scientists dissolved the drug into both ethanol and several branded light and dark rums in different coloured bottles. The tests used a lower amount of cocaine than would be expected to be found in bottles being carried by smugglers.

The technique means that border officials could detect illegal drugs without alerting the smugglers meaning authorities could then track the shipment to its destination.

Bradford University's Dr Tasnim Munshi said: "Until now it has been difficult to detect cocaine in liquid form in these environments. However our study shows that using an analytical technique such as Raman spectroscopy can successfully detect the presence of these drugs without removing specimens from their containers.

"We believe a portable instrument will prove vital in the fight against illegal drug smuggling by allowing for the fast and effective screening of different solutions over a very short space of time."

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The findings have been published in the journal Drug Testing and Analysis. The study also includes work from a research team in Switzerland who have applied technology used in MRI scanners to detect the dissolved drug.