Forever Summer victim had taken legal highs

One of the five people who died at the Forever Summer festival in Manila on 21 May had taken MDMA-like designer drugs, a postmortem examination has revealed.

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) confirmed traces of two synthetic stimulants – MDMA methylene homolog and methylenedioxycathinone, the latter of which is found in the khat plant – both are which are ‘legal highs’ yet to be banned in the Philippines.

It has not been disclosed which victim is confirmed to have taken the stimulants.

The National Bureau of Investigation confirmed traces of two synthetic stimulants yet to be banned in the Philippines

The NIB is still investigating reports that the five had taken ‘green amore’ – a mix of MDMA and shabu, or methamphetamine (‘crystal meth’) – while at the festival. NIB doctor Wilfredo Tierra, who carried out the postmortems on Bianca Fontejon, 18, and Lance Garcia, 36, says both victims’ hearts were black and that they had watery fluid in their internal organs, likely as a result of an adverse reaction to drugs.

It has since arrested five people in connection with supply of drugs at the event.

IQ earlier this week reported on the proliferation of unregulated legal highs in Europe: In 2015, 98 new substances were detected in the EU for the first time, bringing the number of new psychoactive substances (NPS) monitored to more than 560, of which 70% were detected in the last five years.