The Dutch Trimbos Institute has warned about potentially lethal ecstasy pills shaped like the head of U.S. President Donald Trump. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Associated Press.
The institute said that several of the pills have been handed in recently at a network of centers that test drugs for users before they take them. "Absolutely do not use these pills," the institute warned.
In a "Red Alert" published on its website and social media, the institute warned that the pills contain a high concentration of a chemical called PMMA, or para-methoxymethamfetamine, similar to MDMA, the active ingredient in ecstasy pills. PMMA is slower working than MDMA, which could lead users to take more because they think the first pill didn't work, leading to a risk of overdosing. The institute added that use of the pills "can lead to overheating with possibly deadly consequences."
Spokesperson Anniek Groothuis told The Associated Press that the institute has no reported cases of serious illness or fatalities among people who may have used the drug. "We do not know of any victims where PMMA was found in their blood," she said.
Producing, selling and using ecstasy is illegal in the Netherlands, but it's widely used, particularly at clubs and music festivals. A government report in 2024 said that some 550,000 people took the drug in a year.
It's not the first time ecstasy pills in the form of Trump's head have appeared. In 2017, German police seized thousands of orange Trump-shaped tablets.