LFI MP addicted to 3-MMC: what is this drug presented as the “new cocaine” ?

The rebellious deputy Andy Kerbrat was arrested red-handed for buying narcotics on October 17. Highly prized in the nightlife world, this deadly drug is all the rage thanks to ;acirc;ce à its effects and its attractive price.

Andy Kerbrat, a member of parliament for La France Insoumise (LFI) in Loire-Atlantique, was arrested on Thursday, October 17, while he was buying drugs in Paris. The incident took place on the platform of the Lamarck-Caulaincourt metro station in the 18th arrondissement of the capital, around 10 p.m., according to information from Valeurs Actuelles. He was taken to the Goutte-d'Or police station without putting up the slightest resistance. After hierarchical advice, the elected official was not placed in police custody and was heard in a voluntary hearing the following day.

The 34-year-old man is “being prosecuted for drug use and summoned for notification of a penal order,” the Paris prosecutor's office told Valeurs Actuelles. A simplified procedure, used for cases of low seriousness. It allows a defendant to be judged quickly without a hearing. The prosecution, still according to media reports, would have requested a fine of 1,000 euros against the left-wing parliamentarian.

Andy Kerbrat was in possession of 1.35 grams of 3-MMC, a synthetic drug from the cathinone family, popular at festive and/or sexual events. 1 gram of the same drug and 200 euros were also discovered on the seller, a minor known for around ten similar acts, the Paris prosecution service said. The latter, however, was under sentence of four months in prison with suspended probation, handed down in October. He was placed in provisional detention.

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This Monday, October 21, in a press release published on the social network X (formerly Twitter), the rebellious deputy “fully assumes his responsibility”, and indicates that he is putting himself “at the disposal of justice”. He notably acknowledges having consumed synthetic drugs “in the face of personal problems and psychological fragility”. Andy Kerbrat also announces that he is starting “a treatment protocol” after consulting his doctor and offering his “apologies”. According to him, “addiction is a public health problem and must be treated as such. I have been fighting this battle for a long time alongside other victims of addiction. And I will continue to fight it”, he says. “The main person concerned, however, regrets the revelation of the affair by Valeurs Actuelles “before” that he “can inform them (his entourage) directly”. This case “once again raises questions about the porosity between police sources and the far-right media”, he writes.

Associated with chemsex but not only, less expensive than cocaine

3-MMC is a synthetic drug belonging to the cathinone family. Presented as the “new cocaine”, it is “similar to amphetamine”, according to the European Observatory. It can be consumed in powder, crystal, tablet form, but also ingested “in the form of a parachute, diluted in a drink, snorted, injected or plugged (inserted into the anus using a syringe without a needle”, explains Drugs Info Services. This drug provides stimulating effects, promoting contact and encouraging empathy. It helps to reduce the feeling of fatigue and increase the feeling euphoria. It can also cause an  "intensification of sensations and, in a sexual context, an increase in sensuality and endurance", specifies Drogue Info Services.

While it is often associated with chemsex, in recent years, this new synthetic drug has become more widely available in the world of nightlife more generally. Delivered to home by sellers, it has the advantage of being cheaper than cocaine. “Between 30 and 40 euros, compared to 50-70 euros for the price of a gram of cocaine”, according to the OFTD. The French Observatory of Drugs and Addictive Trends specifies that it is now also consumed “in less specific festive events, for example nightclubs, festivals, concerts, free parties or private parties and by wider audiences who attend these parties, men, women, gays or heterosexuals who will occasionally consume different psychostimulant products”.

Consumption of 3-MMC can cause anxiety, headaches, vomiting, exhaustion during the descent phase and an increased heart rate. It can also be fatal: cases of myocardial infarction, organ failure and overdoses leading to death have already been observed.