A chilling new threat has emerged on the streets of London, a drug so potent it’s quietly claiming lives and leaving a trail of fear among those who work closest to the city’s most vulnerable. It’s called cychlorphine, and it’s estimated to be 200 times stronger than heroin.
Each morning, Elodie Berland and Jon Glackin of Streets Kitchen venture into Keir Starmer’s constituency, offering a lifeline of hot drinks and food to those living on the streets. They’ve witnessed hardship, but lately, a new dread has settled over their work. The question isn’t *if* they’ll hear of another overdose, but *who* will be lost next.
The Metropolitan Police have confirmed at least three deaths in Camden within a single month – a man in his 50s, a woman in her 40s, and another man in his 40s. But authorities believe the true number of cychlorphine-related fatalities is significantly higher, with estimates reaching thirteen across London in the last year.
What makes cychlorphine particularly terrifying is its insidious nature. It isn’t being sought out; it’s being added to other drugs – heroin, counterfeit pharmaceuticals, even cocaine – and unsuspecting users are unknowingly consuming a potentially lethal dose. The drug originates from labs, likely in India or China, where quality control is nonexistent and dangerous cross-contamination is rampant.
The substance appears as a white powder, easily mixed into existing supplies, making detection incredibly difficult. Vicki Markiewicz, executive director at Change Grow Live, explains that the drug is often found in fake oxycodone pills, but its presence is spreading. Recent cases in Yorkshire and Humber suggest it’s even appearing in party drugs, broadening the circle of risk.
Cychlorphine’s chemical structure is a slight alteration of previously banned synthetic opioids. As production of those substances was curtailed in Afghanistan, criminal gangs have adapted, finding ways to circumvent regulations and boost their profits. The drug is easily smuggled into the UK because it’s odorless, bypassing sniffer dogs at checkpoints.
A disturbing reality is that coroners are struggling to identify cychlorphine as the cause of death. The drug is so new that routine postmortems don’t automatically test for it, often leading to overdoses being misattributed to heroin. Furthermore, like similar compounds, cychlorphine may break down in the body after death, vanishing from test results altogether.
Recent police action has yielded some results. Eleven individuals have been arrested and charged with conspiring to supply Class A drugs linked to cychlorphine in the Camden area, with significant seizures of drugs, cash, and even weapons. But the fight is far from over.
Elodie and Jon continue their work, now burdened with the added responsibility of warning those they serve. They describe Camden as a “testing ground” for new drugs, a place where vulnerable individuals are exploited for profit. The lack of timely information about cychlorphine has left many exposed and devastated.
Change Grow Live is urgently advocating for wider access to naloxone, a life-saving medication that can reverse opioid overdoses. The organization stresses that anyone could unknowingly consume cychlorphine, as it’s readily available through channels like Snapchat, not just the dark web. The danger, they warn, is indistinguishable from any other drug.
