Go Unlimited with Magzter GOLD

Go Unlimited with Magzter GOLD

Get unlimited access to 10,000+ magazines, newspapers and Premium stories for just

$149.99
 
$74.99/Year
The Perfect Holiday Gift Gift Now

Dealers selling weight-loss jabs alongside class-A drugs

The Independent

|

February 23, 2025

Drug dealers are selling weight-loss jabs like Ozempic and prescription medication for ADHD alongside class-A drugs like cocaine, an investigation has revealed.

- AMY-CLARE MARTIN

Dealers selling weight-loss jabs alongside class-A drugs

Injection pens of semaglutide, often known under brand names Ozempic and Wegovy, are being offered for sale for £170 by seasoned drug dealers along with illegal party drugs like ketamine and MDMA as demand for the weight-loss drugs surges.

The popular drugs, available on the NHS to treat type 2 diabetes, were found on a “menu” of substances in text messages seen by The Times. Other items listed for sale included Ritalin, a stimulant for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and nitrous oxide, which was recently made a class-C drug.

MORE STORIES FROM The Independent

The Independent

The Independent

An excess of sci-fi bunkum mars Stranger Things finale

The Netflix coming-of-age saga bows out as just another CGI rock'em sock'em adventure

time to read

4 mins

January 02, 2026

The Independent

The Independent

Independent photographer David Ashdown dies at 75

Tributes have been paid to the award-winning photojournalist David Ashdown, with The Independent’s editor-in-chief Geordie Greig highlighting the “skill and dignity” of the title’s former chief sports photographer.

time to read

2 mins

January 02, 2026

The Independent

The Independent

Farke's resilient Leeds frustrate goal shy Liverpool

After the game that had everything, the match that had nothing.

time to read

3 mins

January 02, 2026

The Independent

The Independent

THE KILLER ELITE

'The Traitors' avoids overfamiliarity by adding a hilarious hierarchical dimension to its plot

time to read

2 mins

January 02, 2026

The Independent

The Independent

Fractious Your Party to pick new leader next month

Your Party will elect a new leadership by the end of February after co-founders Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana were barred from standing under new rules.

time to read

2 mins

January 02, 2026

The Independent

Revealed: hundreds of prisoners trapped in mental health units

After languishing in jail for years with no hope of release - some for offences as petty as stealing a mobile phone or a laptop - 233 IPP prisoners sentenced to indefinite terms are now so ill they're serving their time in secure hospitals

time to read

1 min

January 02, 2026

The Independent

The Independent

At least 40 killed in ‘horror movie’ blaze at ski resort

Fire also seriously injures scores of revellers at Swiss Alps bar

time to read

3 mins

January 02, 2026

The Independent

The Independent

Inside the Welsh towns and villages turning to Reform

With Senedd elections looming, Holly Evans finds Wales's traditional red heartlands rejecting Labour in their droves

time to read

5 mins

January 02, 2026

The Independent

The Independent

Spirited Sunderland dent Man City's title ambitions

Sunderland extended their unbeaten Premier League home record to 10 games after holding Manchester City to a goalless draw.

time to read

2 mins

January 02, 2026

The Independent

The Independent

Blow for PM as small boat crossings surge in 2025

Arrivals at second highest on record despite crackdown

time to read

3 mins

January 02, 2026

Listen

Translate

Share

-
+

Change font size

Holiday offer front
Holiday offer back