The Public Prosecutor's Office of Neuquén reported that in the analysis of the adulterated cocaine seized in one of the operations following the deaths of two people who had allegedly consumed the drug, a veterinary remedy was found. The analyses requested by the prosecutor for drug-related crimes, Silvia Moreira, and carried out by the Directorate of Criminalistics and Forensic Studies of the National Gendarmerie, revealed that the cocaine seized during one of the four raids contained a veterinary medication. The investigation began weeks ago when authorities were notified of two people who died and had allegedly consumed adulterated cocaine, which raised an alarm even in the province of La Pampa, according to the Argentine News Agency. Thus, four operations were carried out where drugs and items of importance to the case were seized, while the investigation established that in one of the homes—where one of the surviving victims had purchased the drug—the cocaine was cut with Levamisole, a veterinary antiparasitic. Authorities explained that Levamisole is a veterinary anthelmintic (deworming) drug with immunomodulatory properties, but when consumed as a drug, it can cause severe toxic effects such as vasculitis. Following the detection of this substance, the prosecutor in the case ordered the expansion of the request regarding the biological samples incorporated into the case and notified the health authorities. In this case, the police's Anti-Narcotics Department was in charge of transporting the samples to a laboratory dependent on the Ministry of Security of the province of Buenos Aires, which will carry out the specific studies. 'The investigation continues to develop to determine responsibilities and establish the scope of the facts analyzed, both regarding the sale of the drugs and in the specific case of the adulteration,' the prosecutor's communiqué states.
