Of the 15 million ecstasy tablets seized in 2010 in the United States, 4 million tablets were seized on the norther border with Canada, double the 2 million tablets that were seized in 2006.
Between 2006 and 2010, between 10 to 24 people died each year due to overdosing on ecstasy.
The ecstasy tablets cost between $3 to $10 per pill. According to the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, the illegal trade is mostly done in Canada by Vietnamese drug trafficking gangs.
Source: Kelley Sinoski, “B.C. a hotbed for ecstasy production,” Vancouver Sun, January 4, 2012.
In 2011, police in Brazil seized around 194,000 ecstasy pills in the country. 92,000 pills were seized in the state of Minas Gerais.
In 2001, authorities in the country seized 1,909 pills.
100 percent of the pills are trafficked into Brazil from foreign countries.
Source: Tom Phillips, “Brazil ecstasy haul points to new generation of drug mules,” Guardian, December 18, 2011.
Over 8 percent of men between the ages of 16 and 29, or 100,000 young men in Australia are dependent on a stimulant drug such as speed, cocaine, ecstasy or ice.
Source: “Research reveals worrying male drug trends,” ABC Melbourne, November 21, 2011.
In 2010, the average price of ecstasy in Auckland, New Zealand was $34 per pill (41 New Zealand Dollar), down from the average price of $41 (50 New Zealand Dollar) in 2009.
Source: Martin Johnson, “Survey: ecstasy use up, meth down,” New Zealand Herald, September 8, 2011.
1.4 percent of the entire population of the United States used ecstasy at least once in their lifetime.
Source: “World Drug Report 2011,” United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, June 2011, page 141.
In 2009, law enforcement in Canada busted 12 ecstasy labs and seized close to half a metric ton of ecstasy.
Source: Julian Sher, “Canada is a leading source of synthetic drugs: report,” Globe and Mail, June 24, 2011.
Between 2008 and 2010, teenagers in the United States who have used marijuana within the past year increased from 32 percent to 39 percent. Teenagers who used ecstasy within the past year between 2008 and 2010 also increased from 6 percent to 10 percent.
Soure: Wendell Marsh, “Teen substance abuse on rise over past 3 years: study,” Reuters, April 6, 2011.
Emergency room visits in the United States involving ecstasy increased by 75 percent between 2004 and 2008.
17,865 visits to the ER due to ecstasy was reported in 2008, up from the 10,2220 reported in 2004. Almost 70 percent of the admissions invovled people in the 18-29 age bracket. 17.9 percent invovled people between the ages of 12-17.
Source: Mary Forgione, “Ecstasy use accounts for dramatic rise in ER visits, report says,” Los Angeles Times, March 25, 2011.
Drug smuggling on the border between Canada and the United States lead to US authorities seizing 3,423 kilo of marijuana in 2009, a 22 percent increase from the 2,792 kilos of marijuana seized in 2007. Ecstasy seizures was also up from previous years, with 2,167,238 dosage units of ecstasy seized in 2009, up 6 times from the 312,389 dosage units of ecstasy seized in 2004.
Source: Dan Freedman, “Drug smuggling mounts on northern border,” Kansas City Star, January 22, 2011.
The amount of ecstasy seized by US law enforcement authorities from entering the country from Canada increased by 594 percent between the years 2004 and 2009.
Source: “Drug czar blames Canadian gangs for ecstasy rise in U.S.,” Toronto Star, November 22, 2010.
