Avaliação do perfil de adulteração de amostras de cocaína apreendidas em Alagoas

Abstract

The trafficking and consumption of drugs, especially cocaine, are global concerns due to their deleterious effects on society. In order to increase profit and psychotropic effects, cocaine is often adulterated, and discriminating it provides information for law enforcement initiatives. The objective of the present study was to establish a chemical profile of seized cocaine in Alagoas (2020-2021) to assist the scientific police, intelligence sector, and anti-trafficking agencies of the State. The definitive identification of the drug was performed through gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), followed by statistical treatment by chemometrics. A total of 283 samples of seized cocaine from Maceió and inland cities of Alagoas were analyzed. The main adulterants found in the samples were tetracaine, benzocaine, lidocaine, tetramisole, phenacetin, and caffeine, with the latter being the most prevalent adulterant, reaching 83% compared to others in the present study. Using chemometric statistical tools, namely Principal Component Analysis (PCA) combined with Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA) based on the integration of the chromatographic peak areas of the samples, a distribution without formation of adulteration groups was obtained, revealing the high variability in the preparation of the marketed drug and the absence of a composition pattern for the seized drug.