Ecstasy

Early this month the Dutch and Australian police dismantled a large drug network responsible for trafficking MDMA from the Netherlands to Australia. A total of 850 kilograms of MDMA powder and 550 liters of MDMA oil were seized - enough to make more than 15 million ecstasy pills, according to the Australian Federal Police. The Dutch police arrested eight suspects. One suspect was arrested in Australia.

A couple from Linz in Austria received a quite remarkable wrong delivery. Instead of the clothing they ordered from the Netherlands, they received a package containing 25 thousand ecstasy pills, worth around 500 thousand euros, the Austrian police announced on Monday.

The couple returned the package of ecstasy pills to the post office, who called the police.

While alcohol remains the number one cause of addiction problems in Amsterdam,young adult residents of the capital are drinking less than they did in 2000. There are also fewer smokers, though cocaine use increased, according to the newest Antenna, an annual study by Jellinek and Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences into the alcohol and drug use of Amsterdam young adults, Het Parool reports.

A 31-year-old taxi driver from Amsterdam was sentenced to 3 years in prison, one of which conditionally suspended, for dealing in drugs and firearms on the dark web. The sentence issued by the court of Rotterdam was one year shorter than what the Public Prosecutor demanded, Het Parool reports.

The court considered it proven that the man sold at least nine firearms, hundreds of ecstasy pills, over an ounce of cannabis and nearly 20 grams of cocaine on the dark web. 

Two Dutch men were arrested at the Sziget festival in Hungary over the weekend on suspicion of drug dealing. Local news site 444 called the arrest the "biggest drug bust ever" at the festival. 

A total of 451 bottles of narcotics, 128 grams of cannabis and a kilogram of ecstasy pills were confiscated from the 21- and 22-year-old suspects, according to NU.nl. The drugs have a street value of around 15 thousand euros. The police also found over 500 price lists on the suspects and at the festival, 444 reports.

Dutch actress Imanuelle Grives was arrested in Belgium over the weekend for possession of drugs. She was taken into custody at the entrance of the Tomorrowland festival near the village of Boom, after the entry check found different types of hard and soft drugs on her. According to the Public Prosecutor, she had more drugs in her possession than could be reasonable for own use, NOS reports.

The Public Prosecutor demanded 6.5 years in prison against three men suspected of large-scale drug trafficking through the Hansa Market on the dark web in court on Monday. A female suspect is facing 2 years in prison, eight months of which conditionally suspended. 

The Australian border police in Sydney discovered a number of champagne bottles that didn't contain champagne, but liquid ecstasy. Most of these bottles were shipped to Australia from Belgium, but a number also came from the Netherlands, France and Germany, the Australian Border Force [ABF] said in a statement. 

GroenLinks wants ecstasy to be removed from criminal hands by having the government regulate the drug's production, parliamentarian Kathalijne Buitenweg said to the Volkskrant.

"The government does not have to make the pills itself, but the government must want to take control", she said to the newspaper. She recommends a permit system with controlled production, so that only pills that meet quality requirements are available. "I say it because of public health, but also because we have to do something about the frighteningly growing power of criminals."

The police arrested 12 people in the Netherlands for involvement in the production and export of drugs to Scandinavia. A 13th suspect was arrested in Peer, Belgium. The suspects are 12 men and a woman between the ages of 32 and 16 years. They were arrested on Monday, but the police only announced the arrests on Thursday.

The police searched buildings in Utrecht, Vleuten, Woerden, Maarssen, Houten, Almere, Waardenburg, Lopikerkapel and Aalsmeer. 

On Tuesday the police arrested four suspects in Amsterdam and Werkendam in connection with drug trade on the dark web. They acted as vendors and sent drugs to thousands of people world wide, hidden cleverly in makeup powder boxes, Nintendo games and ink cartridges, among other things, the police said in a statement on Friday.