Corrected: Drug situation in Moscow is grave - Russian Federal Drug Control Service
(wording of headline, para 1 and 2 changed in news item issued at 11.52 p.m. at the request of Federal Drug Control Service department for Moscow)
MOSCOW. July 30 (Interfax) - The drug situation has remained grave in Moscow in H1 of 2014, the Moscow department of the Russian Federal Drug Control Service said.
"The situation related to drug consumption and trafficking in the capital should be assessed as grave," Deputy Head of the Federal Drug Control Service department for Moscow Yury Devyatkin told reporters on Wednesday.
According to the information of the Moscow healthcare department, 40,701 people were registered as drug users in Moscow in January-June 2014, which is 9.8% up year-on-year, Devyatkin said. The number of underage drug users soared 34.8% and reached 693 people, he said.
"The drug overdose death toll figures grew 13%," Devyatkin said.
The number of crimes registered by the Federal Drug Control Service decreased 6.3% to 1,435 offenses and a total of 330.2 kg drugs were seized in January-June 2014, against 160.8 kg in the first six months of 2013.
"The share of heroin seizure increased 30% and in the share of all drugs seized this year it amounts to 77% (255.2 kg). The second place is amphetamines (10.6%), then hashish and marijuana," he said.
According to the information of Devyatkin, southern direction - Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan - still remains the most criminal one in drug trafficking. "Most often drugs are transported using caches or under the cover of legal cargo. Facts are known of masking drug batches for vegetable products - carrots, cucumbers, beet, potatoes - and various packing and construction materials," Devyatkin said.