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SINGAPORE: There has been a declining trend of vapes containing etomidate that have been seized by authorities since the anaesthetic agent was classified as a Class C controlled drug, the Ministry of Health (MOH) and Health Sciences Authority (HSA) jointly said on Friday (Nov 7)
Random surveillance testing conducted by HSA found that the proportion of vapes containing etomidate, also known as Kpods, fell from about one-third of every 100 seized samples in July to 12 per cent in August.
After harsher penalties for vapes took effect on Sep 1, the proportion of Kpods dropped further to 9 per cent that month, MOH and HSA said.
Between Sep 1 and Nov 2, 1,929 people were caught for vape-related offences, of whom 167 were found to be in possession of Kpods.
Among the 167 offenders, 108 have been placed in rehabilitation programmes at the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) and social services agencies. Another 33 of them are pending further investigations or interviews, while six are awaiting placement in a programme.
The remaining 20 will not be placed in a programme. Six are foreigners pending repatriation, while the other 14 are in jail for offences unrelated to vapes.
“Of those placed on rehabilitation, 105 have been compliant with their rehabilitation programme, while three etomidate abusers failed to attend their first rehabilitation appointments,” said MOH and HSA.
Separately, 13 reoffenders have been placed in a Health Promotion Board (HPB) rehabilitation programme. Eleven of them have been compliant with their programme, while two have failed to attend their first appointments.
Three people - two women and a man - have been charged in relation to etomidate-linked offences after they failed to attend or complete their rehabilitation appointments. Another man, who also failed to attend or complete his rehabilitation appointments, will be charged over vaping-related offences on Nov 11.
The maximum penalty for etomidate offenders is a fine of up to S$10,000 (US$7,680) and imprisonment for up to two years, and a fine of up to S$2,000 for e-vaporiser offenders.
"Abusers who fail to report for interviews and rehabilitation will be liable for prosecution," said MOH and HSA.
ONGOING ENFORCEMENT
Eight people have also been charged under the Misuse of Drugs Act in the last nine weeks for allegedly trafficking Kpods, with three of them charged in October.
Authorities also detected 10 smuggling cases involving vapes at the airport, land checkpoints and cruise terminals in the last nine weeks.
Two people were given stern warnings, five were fined, and two were charged in court. The remaining case is still under investigation. More than 26,000 e-vaporisers and related components were seized, MOH and HSA said.
HSA has also removed more than 570 vaping-related online listings, offending websites and Telegram groups over the past nine weeks. It also took action against two people who posted content of themselves vaping or possessing vapes on social media.
The agency noted that more than 2,600 cases of e-vaporiser activities reported through its online reporting form and hotlines, enabling it to conduct targeted enforcement actions due to these public reports.
As such, joint enforcement operations were conducted between Oct 8 and Oct 10 at hotspot areas, including Khatib, Yishun and Punggol.
Five individuals aged between 15 to 37 years old were caught and fined on the spot. Six e-vaporisers - one of them was later found to contain etomidate - and related components were also seized.
MOH and HSA said the government will continue to provide support to those who need help to quit vaping.
In the last nine weeks, 50 people voluntarily signed up for the QuitVape programme at IMH and the four participating social services agencies in a bid to wean themselves off Kpods, while nearly 230 people enrolled in HPB’s I Quit programme.
Those who voluntarily seek help will not face any penalties nor have an offence record for coming forward unless they are separately caught vaping, according to MOH and HSA.
Stricter penalties for vaping offences took effect on Sep 1 under a new enforcement framework, with recalcitrant users required to undergo rehabilitation.
Those who do not complete the rehabilitation programme, or offenders caught using vapes for the third time or more, will be prosecuted in court.
Importers, sellers and distributors of Kpods face stiffer penalties, including up to 20 years’ imprisonment and up to 15 strokes of the cane for importers, and up to 10 years’ jail and five strokes of the cane for sellers and distributors.
