T in the Park fake ecstasy pills warning after another teenage death

Police have issued a drugs warning over fake ecstasy pills ahead of Scotland's T in the Park happening this weekend from Friday 12th to Sunday 14th July at Balado.

The warning comes after green pills with a distinctive Rolex crown stamped on them which were being passed off as ecstasy resulted in the death of a teenager yesterday morning.

The exact ingredients of the pills are unknown and they could contain dangerous chemicals and festival goers need to be aware of the dangers and understand they could have potentially tragic consequences.

The latest death follows six others in the west of Scotland in Glasgow, Lanarkshire and Ayrshire over the past two months, and the hospitalisation of seven young people as a result of taking pink Ecstasy-like Rockstar tablets. This all follows an earlier warning issued last year over both white Mitsubishi logo tablets, and AMT or 5-I.T tablets.

Yesterday an 18-year-old woman died in Alexandria, West Dunbartonshire, and three of her friends were taken to hospital after taking the green crown logo pills which they believed was ecstasy.

The pills have yet to be confirmed as the cause of death, but police have warned festival goers to be on their guard particularly over the summer festival season.

Superintendent Grahame Clarke said: "Public warnings have been issued recently in relation to the dangers of taking ecstasy, or indeed tablets being passed off as ecstasy. They are illegal and could contain a cocktail of toxic ingredients. We have yet to establish if this particular pill is to blame for the death of this young woman, but the fact that she and her friends took pills described as green and with a Rolex stamp on it causes us real concern."

Supt Alan Cunningham, from Police Scotland, told BBC Scotland: "There are clearly tablets in circulation just now which are being passed off as ecstasy... We're not dealing with a single design of tablet and that's why my message is clear about taking ecstasy in all its forms - don't gamble with your life.

"Ecstasy is not a safe drug and never has been. We've found in recent months some of these tablets have particularly toxic contents and we've seen the tragic consequences for these individuals and their families.

"These very sad circumstances highlight the fact that often users don't know what they're taking."

Dr Richard Stevenson, Glasgow Royal Infirmary's senior specialty doctor in emergency medicine, said, "We are deeply concerned about the number of drug-related deaths.

"Symptoms to look for include a high temperature, aggression and muscle pains as well as an extreme exaggerated expected effect of the drug such as hallucinations and excitability which would be very alarming and unpleasant to the person experiencing them.

"These symptoms are treatable if help is sought early. I would urge anyone who begins to feel unwell or feels a more intense high than usual after taking any drug which they think is ecstasy or not to seek immediate medical help."

Illegal drugs will not be tolerated once inside T in the Park and anyone caught dealing or carrying drugs will be arrested, police said. People attending T in the Park in Kinross this weekend have been advised that they can dispose of drugs in amnesty bins at the gate without fear of exclusion or prosecution.

The three day festival will be home to over 200 acts with headliners Mumford & Sons, Rihanna and The Killers, plus The Script, Stereophonics, Beady Eye, Kraftwerk, alt-J, Foals, The Lumineers, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Phoenix, My Bloody Valentine, Two Door Cinema Club, The Courteeners, Frightened Rabbit, Jake Bugg, Of Monsters and Men, Twin Atlantic, Editors, Hurts, Travis, Frank Turner, The View, Noah and the Whale, Ocean Colour Scene, Haim, Imagine Dragons, The Fratellis, Johnny Marr, James Skelly & the Intenders, Villagers, Local Natives, Chvrches, Tribes, FIDLAR, Palma Violets, Kodaline, The 1975, Peace,The Strypes, British Sea Power, The Heavy, Deap Vally, Swim Deep, Trash Talk, Brooke Candy, The Virginmarys and Josephine, plus many more still to be announced.

For the line-up details and day splits, as available, please click here. Expect a line-up of around 180 artists playing over 11 stages.

The festival also offers large camping areas, as well as other attractions, including a large funfair, comedy tent, silent disco, stalls, and food markets.

Tickets for T in the Park 2013 will be priced as follows:

A full weekend camping ticket (Fri-Sun arena access) £194
A full weekend with Thursday camping (Thurs - Sun) £205
A weekend (Fri-Sun) with no camping £184
A Sunday day ticket £82.50
Saturday day tickets have SOLD OUT
Friday only £75

No under 5s. Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult 21+ with a full priced ticket.

To buy tickets now, click here.

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