Gallon of GHB found during Sandy drug raid

SANDY — Narcotics detectives serving a search warrant in Sandy this week seized a small amount of methamphetamine and a gallon of liquid GHB, commonly referred to as the date rape drug.

The discovery was unusual in that cases of GHB have been very rare in recent years, according to police, who now wonder whether it is making a comeback.

GHB was at its peak along the Wasatch Front about 10 to 15 years ago at the height of the rave scene. Drugs such as GHB, Ecstasy and ketamine became known as club drugs, or "clean drugs" because they didn't require a needle. GHB is also known as liquid Ecstasy.

GHB was used at first by bodybuilders for muscle growth. But because it is a colorless and odorless drug, Unified Police Lt. Don Hutson said, it's easy to slip into a drink and go unnoticed.

Four people, both men and women, were detained during the search warrant Wednesday. No one was arrested and charges were pending as of Friday.

But Hutson said the four were not using GHB as a date rape drug.

"Based on information from the people at the home where it was seized, they were using some of it for personal use and also selling it to maintain their addiction," he said. "It intoxicates the person who ingests it and can cause a drunken stupor without a lot of the other effects of alcohol."

What the people who were buying the drug were using it for is unknown, Hutson said.

The GHB was being sold for $10 to $15 per bottle-cap full. A gallon of the material could yield hundreds of doses.

Hutson said Friday that investigators were looking for others possibly involved in the case.

The search warrant was the result of an ongoing investigation, though Hutson could not get into details Friday about how long the house had been under investigation.

Detectives do not believe the drugs were being produced at the home they searched. Rather, it was being supplied by another source, Hutson said.

Contributing: Andrew Adams

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