Thousands of litres of a dangerous drug linked to sexual assaults and overdoses have been seized in Sydney after being smuggled into the country in beauty products and food items, authorities say.
The Australian federal police (AFP) and the Australian Border Force (ABF) said on Thursday they had seized 4,200 litres of butanediol – commonly known as “bute” – in the three months since laws were changed to make it a border-controlled drug.
When consumed, the industrial solvent is metabolised into gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB), which depresses and slows the central nervous system.
“Bute is an industrial chemical used to produce plastics and can be a significant danger if consumed,” the AFP commander Kate Ferry said. “The concerns of law enforcement agencies are rising because of reports bute is being increasingly linked to sexual assaults as well as overdoses.”
Ferry said the chemical was typically used to produce plastics and was “extremely dangerous and damaging to humans”.
It was difficult to quantify the frequency of its use in sexual assaults because it presented as GHB when subsequently tested, she said.
“But anecdotal evidence from state and territory law enforcement agencies is this is coming up and has been since about 2020 as predominantly used in date-rape cases,” Ferry said on Thursday.
“So it’s significant enough for the commonwealth government to make that legislation change and put it at the height of the most serious drugs in Australia.”
Officers detected about 180 litres of bute imported from China in early March. It was concealed in bottles labelled body oil. That bust led to a further 1,000 litres being discovered in Fairfield and Lidcombe. There were subsequent seizures in late March and May.
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The drug can be imported legally – but only with the correct permits.
The acting ABF commander, Asha Patwardhan, said the drug was often concealed in beauty products such as body oils and face masks, as well as in food and cooking products.
“Typically we are seeing the imports originate from the Asian market, with the majority of larger quantities from China,” she said. “They are only interested in one thing and that is profits.”
Ferry said women in particular should be cautious about who had access to their drinks but added that the agencies’ work was designed to take the onus off potential victims.
“Australian women are a little tired of being told what to do in terms of being safe for themselves,” she said.
“We’re here today saying this is a whole of Australia problem, what the AFP and the ABF will do is actually target these people who are bringing this drug in, in the first place, that ends up in women’s drinks leading to harrowing consequences for them.”
Ferry added: “Our message to the community is to stop taking this drug. Stop creating this international demand. Stop supporting criminal groups who seek to profit from the pain of others.”
Importing a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug attracts a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
