InSight Crime open source research has also identified credible media reports of tusi in Mexico, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Peru, Bolivia and Paraguay. Mixmag spoke to a London-based DJ who is a regular on the capital’s alternative scene. “I’ve seen tusi a lot at club and house parties, and used it a few times. One time in particular was strong and very trippy, but I really enjoyed it,” they say, noting that it had little effect on other occasions.
Users might feel an overwhelming urge to keep using tuci for its euphoric effects due to its MDMA content, spiked with speed, which puts the user on alert at the same time. Over time, users can build a tolerance, needing more of the drug to get the same high, which escalates the addiction risk. The effects of pink cocaine can be unpredictable, and side effects vary widely depending on the individual and the specific drug mixture. Consumers may experience nausea, vomiting, increased heart rates, anxiety, and hallucinations. Law enforcement in New York has also linked the drug to incidents of physical and sexual assault. Such dangerous outcomes are not uncommon when individuals combine ketamine with stimulants like methamphetamine, which can have opposing effects on the body, such as accelerating and then slowing the heart rate.
- They phone the supplier and say, ‘look, I want a more downer tusi,’ or one that is more stimulating or even a psychedelic one,” he told InSight Crime.
- The drug recently made headlines when former One Direction member Liam Payne was reported to have “pink cocaine” in his system when he fell to his death from a balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
- Since the primary substance is often ketamine, many of its effects may occur.
- “When it began to be revealed that the substance did not really have 2C-B in it, many people began to make it, to “cook” it as they say,” Julián Quintero told InSight Crime.
People using may think the drug is 2C/2C-B, toosy drug and they may also be unaware that the concoction tends to consist of ketamine and a wide variety of other drugs. Unintentional exposure to its contents can lead to increased risk of adverse effects. The tusi phenomenon also has the potential to complicate drug research as unknown exposure to drugs like ketamine and MDMA will lead to underreporting of use. The bright pink substance’s look appeals to users, but because it is a relatively newer drug, its long-term effects have yet to be studied. Pink cocaine, also known as tusi or Tucibi is a street drug cocktail that is produced by mixing MDMA, ketamine, and speed and is also contaminated with substances like oxycodone and fentanyl.
The drug recently made headlines when former One Direction member Liam Payne was reported to have “pink cocaine” in his system when he fell to his death from a balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The media has played a role in glamorizing this type of drug and drug abuse behavior, often depicting them in a favorable light in television and movies as a pink powder drug, perpetuating a troubling trend. Tusi lavada denotes a particular type or variation of the drug known popularly as tusi, which is a slang term for pink cocaine. When used in the context of drug jargon, this might suggest that the tusi has undergone a certain process of refinement or purification.
From Colombia to the World
“But it’s interesting how rarely we actually find it.” There is also evidence that tusi can contain bath salts, caffeine, LSD, or mescaline. The drug known as “pink cocaine,” a potent and potentially dangerous party drug, has been widely discussed in recent weeks, gaining further attention following its mention in a lawsuit involving music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs. While not containing traditional cocaine, pink cocaine, also called tusi, tusibi, or tuci, is often a mix of ketamine, methamphetamine, molly, and opioids. It has a striking pink color that comes from food coloring, rather than any unique drug component. Pink cocaine may have surfaced in Colombia, but its ties to Europe can’t be ignored.
- Several men were said to have held up the family-owned business at gunpoint, beating two women who worked at the location and dragging them by their hair.
- Despite the name, this drug typically does not contain cocaine, and researchers say it rarely includes 2C-B, a psychedelic compound originally synthesized in California in the 1970s.
- A statement by a Colombian drug testing project, Échele Cabeza, warned that until this point tusi mostly contained ketamine, MDMA and amphetamine.
- The synthetic hallucinogen – often pegged as a cross between MDMA and LSD – was first synthesised by the research chemist Alexander “Sasha” Shulgin in 1974.
- A string of seizures across Latin America have revealed how “tusi,” a pink synthetic drug powder, is expanding into new countries and increasing its share of the region’s flourishing synthetic drug markets.
- “Cocaine is a stimulant, and someone who is expecting to get cocaine may know how it affects their body or their tolerance,” said Brennan of the “speedball” concoction.
Tusi: The Pink Drug Cocktail That Tricked Latin America
Contrary to popular belief, Tucibi or tuci, typically lacks any amount of 2C-B. Instead, it is composed of a blend of ketamine, amphetamines, or MDMA, and at times mixed with opioids or hallucinogens like LSD and mescaline and opioids like fentanyl and oxycodone. A statement by a Colombian drug testing project, Échele Cabeza, warned that until this point tusi mostly contained ketamine, MDMA and amphetamine. By around 2017 though, a list of increasingly dangerous new psychoactive substances (NPS) began to appear in tusi recipes.
Pink Cocaine vs. Cocaine: Side Effects and Health Risks Compared
Reports state that California and New York were locations of crackdowns as the coasts of Mexico and Central and South America were monitored for four months this year. The U.S. Coast Guard has been diligent in these patrols, capturing several illicit drugs, including tusi, worth upward of $2 billion on the streets. Ketamine, while used medically in specific, controlled circumstances, can be dangerous when consumed recreationally. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) warns that non-medical ketamine use can cause significant side effects, including cardiovascular and respiratory complications.
What Exactly Is Tusi?
On the contrary, it was growing so much that in 2013, Colombia’s police director responded to the seizure of a few thousand alleged 2C-B capsules by claiming the drug was replacing cocaine. Listen to our Pink Cocaine Podcast explaining what pink cocaine actually is and where it comes from. Drug cartels in Colombia gave the nickname Tusi or Tucibi to this dangerous drug cocktail just to make it easier to market. The information contained on this website is not intended to be a substitute for, or to be relied upon as, medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Personalized support for addressing your child’s substance use or addiction available in English and Spanish.
Pink cocaine has stirred concern in global communities and media not only due to its popularity but also for its components. Despite the name, this drug typically does not contain cocaine, and researchers say it rarely includes 2C-B, a psychedelic compound originally synthesized in California in the 1970s. Instead, the primary component in pink cocaine is ketamine, a tranquilizer known for its potentially severe physical and mental health risks. People may take tusi thinking it contains 2C-B drugs or cocaine but are really ingesting an unknown mixture of other substances. Tusi emerged as a novel substance in 2022, with its rise potentially linked to the circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic. With people confined to their homes during lockdowns, drug use became an increasingly attractive option.
A Teen Died After His Drink Was Spiked With Tusi
Due to the unpredictable composition of Tucibi, even a first-time use can prove fatal. Meanwhile, Brennan detailed her first run-in with tusi when 51-year-old Carlos Asturias was arrested in January 2023. He was reportedly pulled over for a traffic stop and found to have 10 pounds of pink cocaine in a bag. Since the primary substance is often ketamine, many of its effects may occur. For instance, a person might have problems with attention, learning ability, and memory. In high doses, ketamine can cause delirium or extreme confusion, memory loss, problems with physical movement, high blood pressure, and depression.
Since 2017, tusi has therefore democratized, going from the fanciest nightclubs to the toughest streets. In 2012, tusi retailed at $71 per gram; as of mid-2022, it sells in Colombia for under $10 per gram, according to Julián Quintero. “When it began to be revealed that the substance did not really have 2C-B in it, many people began to make it, to “cook” it as they say,” Julián Quintero told InSight Crime. In October 2014, a struggle for control over tusi sales in Cali led to an internal purge in the Urabeños crime group that murdered eight people. One faction had allegedly tried to break away and establish an independent tusi trafficking network, cutting out the other faction. It quickly began cultivating attention as an “elite drug,” a synthetic European import far more expensive than the locally produced cocaine that Colombia’s middle and working classes were increasingly using.
Not only did it make consumption much more pleasant, but the bright pink color created a striking new visual aesthetic, according to Julián Andrés Quintero, investigative sociologist at Social Technical Action, a Colombian drug policy NGO. In June, tusi consumption was reportedly booming in the nightclubs of Barquisimeto, a city in western Venezuela, while tusi refining laboratories were discovered in Peru and Panama. Uruguay’s government and Costa Rica’s press railed against the drug’s spread just as police in Paraguay made one of their first ever domestic interdictions. They love the energy,” says Mireia Ventura of Spain’s Energy Control, which tests drug samples from all over Europe. It was popular first with the Latinx population but stretched its legs after the pandemic.
A string of seizures across Latin America have revealed how “tusi,” a pink synthetic drug powder, is expanding into new countries and increasing its share of the region’s flourishing synthetic drug markets. It flowed through the country’s nightlife, becoming a drug of the so-called elite, but unfortunately the pipelines for 2C-B to South America were often blocked. Dealers began making their own blend, with a hotpotch of substances designed to imitate the psychedelic stimulant experience – frequently a mix of caffeine, ketamine, MDMA or amphetamines and maybe tiny amounts of actual 2C-B.
