Meow Meow: Inside Russia's Mephedrone Teen Crisis - BBC World Service Documentaries

#BBCEye gains rare access to the hidden world of Russia’s teenage mephedrone market: meeting the dealers, chemists, addicts and police battling the brutal synthetic drug market.

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BBC Eye Investigations exposes the growing problem of mephedrone use among Russian teenagers, a synthetic drug known as “meow” or “the poor man's cocaine” - following the entire drug chain from Chinese precursors, to Russian production labs, to the lives destroyed by addiction.

Technology has supercharged this crisis. Unlike in the West, where darknet drugs are typically mailed, Russia’s distribution system relies on GPS-tagged caches hidden in public spaces. These rapid, anonymous pickups allow users to access drugs within hours. Behind this system are sprawling darknet markets and encrypted Telegram channels, where vendors recruit teenagers as couriers - or “cladmen” - with promises of fast money.

As law enforcement arrests thousands of these low-level runners, the system simply regenerates.

00:00 Introduction: Mephedrone in Russia
03:23 Why is mephedrone is so addictive?
05:47 Inside a rehab centre
07:51 Underage chemist on his production process
11:11 Numbers behind the crisis
13:11 From China to Russia: Dealer and ex-cop on smuggling routes
22:33 Olya: Exchanging her body for the next high
25:56 Maxim: From Russian prison to fighting in Ukraine
31:21 Olya and friends shoot up
34:45 Where are they now?

🎞️ To watch more investigative journalism from our award-winning BBC Eye investigations team, check out this documentary playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz_B0PFGIn4fa8LK1lptsvoA_spfJhzda

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