BIRN lifts the lid on the online ads bringing to the Balkans illicit opioids more potent than fentanyl, sourced in China, ‘100% double vacuumed sealed’ and delivered by FedEx and DHL.
Enes Hodzic
BIRN analysed almost 30 online ads targeting Bosnia, Serbia, Croatia and Montenegro and mainly offering subtypes of nitazene – protonitazene, isotonitazene, and metonitazene – that vary in strength.
Most of the ads are brightly coloured and accompanied by photographs of young women of Asian appearance and packets containing powdery substances. Written in Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian and English, the ads promise fast delivery and discretion.
Behind the pretty pictures, data from national and international anti-drug agencies show that hundreds of deaths in Britain, the European Union, and North America have been attributed to nitazene.
Besides ‘adking’, nine other sellers contacted undercover by BIRN offered to send nitazene anywhere in the world. Two said they sent their goods from Europe and one from Georgia.
One, reached on Telegram, said they accepted payment in cryptocurrency.
“Minimum order is 175 euros,” wrote the seller, whose profile said they are located in Rijeka, Croatia.
“Bro, we do 100% double vacuumed sealed and you receive it with no problem.”
This seller’s ad was published in May last year on the Bosnian site ASoglas, under the category ‘Watches’.
Photos on the seller’s Telegram account suggest they have previously delivered to the Bristol area of Britain.
The investigative media network Bellingcat was first to report on the flow of nitazene from China to Europe via major courier services.
“What we saw is that these vendors are openly advertising on the internet (on their own websites, social media, and legitimate e-commerce platforms), bragging about their ability to deliver safely to Europe,” said Connor Plunkett, a Bellingcat researcher who worked on the story.
Bellingcat identified the appearance of nitazene in at least 20 European states since 2019, corresponding to a rise in overdose deaths attributed to the opioid.
“I think the persistence of these types of online vendors shows they are having continued success, and if it works for one synthetic substance then there’s every reason to think it will work for others,” said Plunkett.
‘I delete them immediately’
