A Mystery Powder Arrived in the Mail. It Almost Killed 9

By Arden Dier

January 4, 2018

Nine backpackers from four countries were sent to hospitals in Australia this week, including at least three who were on life support Wednesday, after snorting a white powder sent through the mail. Seven men and two women, ages 21 to 25, snorted a white powder they assumed was cocaine around 9pm Tuesday after finding it inside a package delivered to the Perth property at which they were staying, reports the West Australian.

Authorities now say the package from New York, which one of the backpackers says was addressed to someone not living at the Perth residence, contained hyoscine, an anti-nausea drug sometimes used in high doses as a date rape drug, after a friend found the backpackers semi-paralyzed and suffering from seizures and hallucinations, per the BBCand ABC Australia.

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