A synthetic drug that users mistook for ecstasy resulted in 13 people being admitted to hospital in Christchurch late last month.
Photo: 123RF
Police said on 24 February, Christchurch Hospital's emergency department reported the admission of nine people, including a 15-year-old, suffering from what they believed was a bad batch of ecstasy.
Another four people were admitted the following Monday.
Detective Inspector Greg Murton said testing had now revealed the substance taken by the patients was N-Ethylpentylone, not ecstasy.
The drug is three times stronger than ecstasy, he said.
People could not tell what was in any synthetic drug they took, and were putting themselves at risk of serious harm or death by taking them.