Cocaine Contamination in Belo Horizonte-MG Paper Currency

Abstract

Cocaine Contamination in Belo Horizonte-MG Paper CurrencyAbstract: Cocaine is one of the most problematic illicit drugs in Brazil, because of its social impact and toxicological data for users and society in general. One form of this drug is used intranasal, when it is in the form of cocaine hydrochloride and can be sniffed using paper money as an artifact. Thus, our study aimed to examine banknotes of R$ 2.00 (two reais) from Belo Horizonte-MG, in order to determine the percentage of notes with cocaine residues and for knowing the quantitative profile of them. The notes (n = 50) were collected from outlets in downtown of Belo Horizonte and stored in envelopes for the analysis. New notes obtained from the Central Bank were used as blank sample. The notes was extracted with solvents in ultrasound bath. The two extracts were mixed, centrifuged at 13,000 rpm for 3 minutes and analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detector (235 nm). The method was validated, and revealed a linearity between 0.5 and 10 g/mL (10 to 200 g/bill), mean intra and inter precision test of 5.3 % and 7.6 % respectively and average recovery of 98 %. Contaminants commonly present in cocaine street drug like lidocaine, benzocaine, caffeine, acetaminophen and propranolol do not show any peaks at the same retention time of cocaine. After analysis, the banknotes were dried and returned to service without any damage and loss of security features. Of 50 notes analyzed, 43 had cocaine residues. The average concentration of cocaine found in the notes was (148.56 + 230.06) g /bill (RSD = 155 %), and 36 % had levels between 10 and 50 g/bill. Thus, we conclude that the banknotes of R$ 2 reais in the central region of Belo Horizonte, have a high percentage of contamination by cocaine, which may come from direct contamination of the drug in notes or indirectly between notes contaminated and contaminated surfaces.