In an attempt to get a grip on the illegal production of illicit drugs, the B.C. government has introduced legislation to toughen the regulations on pill-press machines.
The bill, if passed, would restrict ownership, possession and use of equipment that can be used to make illicit drugs.
“Police have asked for more control and monitoring of who has use of pill presses,” Solicitor General Mike Farnworth said in a statement.
“This bill is critical in bolstering police efforts to disrupt the supply chain and get counterfeit pills off of the streets and out of the hands of those who recklessly distribute death-dealing drugs.”
The restrictions would be imposed on not just pill presses, but gel-cap machines and pharmaceutical mixers. The machines can be used to produce thousands of pills an hour that are then sold on the streets. The pills are often made with a mixture that includes fentanyl.
The legislation proposes to punish those who sell pill presses without being an authorized seller. The new rules would require sales record to be turned over to government and anyone who wants to apply for a sales licence must undergo a criminal record check. A first conviction would carry a fine of up to $200,000, a second conviction would have a maximum fine of $350,000, with a third offence carrying a maximum penalty of $500,000 and six months in jail on subsequent convictions.
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The federal government has pill press legislation, but Farnworth says it has loopholes, including no tracking on who is purchasing the equipment and no background checks. Farnworth said the B.C. legislation would change that.
“Background checks would have to be done on those that sell these. Businesses that are selling them now do not have to keep records and that will now change,” said Farnworth.
The Association of Chiefs of Police Drug Advisory Committee applauds the legislation. Chair Mike Serr said his committee was concerned about loopholes in the federal rules and that these changes should address those concerns. Serr says the message he wants to get out to the public is that authentic looking pills are easily made with these machines.
“We are seeing counterfeit, in particular OxyContin, pills on the street that are very well made and we want to ensure that people who are using these pills know they are using a counterfeit drug,” Serr said. “Certainly someone who is buying a product they know is illicit, they have a better understanding of the risks they are taking.”
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On top of the pill press legislation, the province is creating a dedicated anti-trafficking team with the provincial RCMP and providing additional resources for all police agencies to support actions against organized crime importers.
“Drug dealers are unfortunately very nimble, they do find new ways to get their products out on the street. But certainly the more we can disrupt them, to make things more challenging, the better,” said Serr. “We know drug producers are using these pills to get fentanyl out on the streets.”
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