Nine out of 10 Canadian banknotes studied laced with cocaine: U.S. research
U.S. researchers examine banknotes taken from Toronto
August 18, 2009 5:29 a.m.
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TORONTO - Nearly nine out of 10 Canadian banknotes examined by a team of U.S. researchers contained trace amounts of cocaine.
In a study presented Sunday at the National Meeting of the American Chemical Society, researchers looked at banknotes from more than 30 cities in Canada, the U.S., Brazil, China, and Japan.
Twenty-seven Canadian bills, taken mostly from Toronto and the Sarnia, Ont., area, were analyzed, said lead researcher Yuegang Zuo, a chemistry and biochemistry professor at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth.
Of the Canadian bills, 85 per cent were laced with cocaine. The amount of coke found on the banknotes ranged from 2.4 micrograms to upwards of 2,530 micrograms - approximately 100 grains of sand.
The results in the U.S. were similar. The researchers examined 234 bills from 17 U.S. cities and found that nearly 90 per cent of the notes contained trace amounts of cocaine.
Scientists have long known that money can become contaminated with cocaine during drug deals or by snorting the drug through rolled bills.
Bills that are not involved in drug deals can also be contaminated as they are processed by banks.
Such studies can be useful for police, said Zuo, because they can help identify drug traffic patterns in a particular community.
More on link
U.S. researchers examine banknotes taken from Toronto
August 18, 2009 5:29 a.m.
Article Link
TORONTO - Nearly nine out of 10 Canadian banknotes examined by a team of U.S. researchers contained trace amounts of cocaine.
In a study presented Sunday at the National Meeting of the American Chemical Society, researchers looked at banknotes from more than 30 cities in Canada, the U.S., Brazil, China, and Japan.
Twenty-seven Canadian bills, taken mostly from Toronto and the Sarnia, Ont., area, were analyzed, said lead researcher Yuegang Zuo, a chemistry and biochemistry professor at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth.
Of the Canadian bills, 85 per cent were laced with cocaine. The amount of coke found on the banknotes ranged from 2.4 micrograms to upwards of 2,530 micrograms - approximately 100 grains of sand.
The results in the U.S. were similar. The researchers examined 234 bills from 17 U.S. cities and found that nearly 90 per cent of the notes contained trace amounts of cocaine.
Scientists have long known that money can become contaminated with cocaine during drug deals or by snorting the drug through rolled bills.
Bills that are not involved in drug deals can also be contaminated as they are processed by banks.
Such studies can be useful for police, said Zuo, because they can help identify drug traffic patterns in a particular community.
More on link
I'm sure some from Ottawa were taken too, they just didn't want the political implications... LOL
