Warning after pills posted to independent businesses in Gloucester

Thousands of pounds worth of MDMA pills have been posted to independent businesses in Gloucester over recent months and police are issuing a warning.

So far two businesses have received numerous packages which contain around 130 pills of the Class A drug ecstasy in each.

Every package had a postal address in Illinois, USA with the local businesses marked as the ‘return to sender’ address but these businesses have not been sending out the packages.

In total 16 packages have been seized by police. A number of parcels had been thrown away before police were informed.

There are concerns if further parcels turn up at different addresses and get in to the hands of children who could think they are sweets.

Anyone who receives a similar package with an overseas address that they are not expecting, which feels like it contains tablets, is asked to not open it but to report it to police by phoning 101 and quoting incident 195 of 27 February.