Daniel J. Ollero Madrid

Madrid

Updated Thursday, February 8, 2024-00:17

  • Events New blow to the Chinese mafia: The police arrest a group of counterfeiters with firearms, drugs and bulletproof clothing who were trying to make counterfeit moneyml

  • Narcotics The drug delivery business that is triumphing in Madrid: "It is as easy to buy cocaine as ordering a hamburger"

You don't bite into a vein, snort it with a turulo, or smoke a crack pipe.

It is sucked from a wipe

. Its effects are as powerful as they are ephemeral and its name hints at the intensity of the experience that its name promises. Known colloquially as

Agua de Dios or Sacred Water

, it is one of the fashionable drugs among the elites of the Asian community in Spain, with a price of around 300 euros per dose. It is sold in

karaoke bars, drug dealers and brothels

, since its consumption is associated with sexual relations, celebrations and, more specifically, prostitution. Therefore, during these days when Madrid is dedicated to celebrating the Chinese New Year,

its demand is in high season

.

"Compared to other narcotic substances popular among the Spanish population,

Agua de Dios is an extremely expensive drug

," Red Cross sources explain to GRAN MADRID. "As a comparison," they continue, "one gram of cocaine, whose price is 60 euros,

is enough for an average user for 10 or 15 doses

; "With Holy Water, they pay 300 euros for each single-use wipe."

A price that, according to the Police,

works as an entry barrier preventing mass consumption

, leaving this substance limited to a very specific cultural and economic context and a profile of demander:

rich men of Asian origin who consume prostitution

.

The emergence of this drug, which has been gaining presence since the end of the pandemic in Madrid, is a phenomenon similar to what happened a decade ago with other substances such as Kai

Xin Guo

(a powerful psychotropic),

Kin

(an anesthetic animal similar to ketamine) or

Cha

, a dangerous tea cocktail that is mixed with ecstasy.

«The person who takes it experiences

total disinhibition and great sexual excitement, which lasts about 20 minutes

. At the same time, it has a certain hallucinogenic component but

without a total loss of consciousness

, so that they know what is happening around them and are able to remember the activities they carry out during the time that the substance takes effect," sources say. of the Red Cross.

The consumption of this drug is strongly associated with prostitution, police sources insist. Even more than other substances such as cocaine, which is usually sold in brothels. "During operations against mafia organizations that sell drugs in brothels,

not only crimes against public health

[selling Holy Water] are combated,

but also others such as human trafficking

, extortion or money laundering."

A good example of this relationship between sex and Sacred Water are the places where the police have detected its sale: such as discreet narco flats and clandestine brothels in Usera, or karaokes, brothels and party rooms where the Chinese community of Madrid goes to their parties and celebrations. Among them,

perhaps the most infamous place is the El cielo y el mundo karaoke

, a regular venue on the news pages located in a polygon on the outskirts of Parla,

the scene of raids, shootings, settling scores

and prostitution.

It was precisely there, coinciding with the 2023 Chinese New Year celebrations, when

the Police made a record seizure of 250 grams of Sacred Water

, thousands of euros in cash, 100 grams of cocaine and dozens of ecstasy pills.

Holy water, cocaine and pills found during an operation.EM

«As with the dates designated for Spaniards, the Chinese New Year, which is celebrated these days in Madrid, translates into an increase in demand for drugs for those who participate in the celebrations. Hence,

we are in the weeks of the year in which the demand for Agua de Dios is highest

," explain sources from the Municipal Police.

For this reason, from the On Drugs

project

, financed by the Ministry of Social Rights, they issued an informative note at the beginning of the week about the dangers associated with this narcotic: «It acts very quickly (between 5 and 6 seconds). "Consumption of it carries health risks such as tachycardia,

respiratory, cardiovascular or cerebrovascular stroke

, even cardiac arrest."