A methodology for illicit heroin seizures comparison in a drug intelligence perspective using large databases

Qualitative and quantitative analysis of seized street drug samples and identification of source

“…But the aspects of heroin trafficking pattern and assigning the source of origin of heroin samples could not be determined. Evaluation of links in heroin seizures and the methodology for illicit heroin seizures suggested by Dujourdy et al [11] and Esseiva et al [12] could not be utilized in the present investigation. However, a simple and indigenous method of assigning the source of origin of heroin samples were utilized by Narayanaswami et al [13,14].…”

Potential of IRMS technology for tracing gamma-butyrolactone (GBL)

“…Therefore, the organic impurities profile which will be influenced by the precursors and chemicals can provide valuable information to assess the link between drug seizures, production batches and trafficking routes [25][26][27]. Regarding profiling of GBL, it appears that this approach will not be effective as this chemical is manufactured at high purity level (>99%).…”

Precursors and Prices

“…Providing a model to apply this analytical strategy is extensive research that has examined statistical methods to determine cutting points for whether a drug originates from the same production batch Esseiva et al, 2003;Zingg, 2005;Anderson et al, 2007;Esseiva et al, 2007;Marquis et al, 2008;Weyermann et al, 2008;Esseiva, Gasté, Alvarez & Anglada, 2011). According to these studies, the pearson correlation has consistently been determined to be the most reliable method to see whether two or more drugs share enough characteristics to have originated from the same manufacturer.…”

“…This study relies on 365 synthetic drugs that were obtained through a project commissioned by the federal government in response to concern over increased use of Providing a model to utilize drug composition data as an intelligence tool is extensive research that outlines statistical methods to determine whether drugs originate from the same production batch Esseiva et al, 2003;Zingg, 2005;Anderson et al, 2007;Esseiva et al, 2007;Weyermann et al, 2008;Marquis et al, 2008;Esseiva et al, 2011). These studies found that the pearson correlation serves as the most reliable statistical tool to determine cutting points at which drugs with shared characteristics belong to the same manufacturer.…”

“…Thus, drugs that shared the highest number of characteristics were also determined to have the highest likelihood of originating from the same manufacturer. The data source used in this study is in contrast to research conducted by Esseiva et al (2003), Esseiva et al (2007), and Zingg (2005) who performed highly sophisticated extraction methods that recorded precisely the amount of each substance present in the seized drug, providing more accurate links between drugs with shared characteristics.…”