BAKU, Azerbaijan – February 2021: Officers of the Air Transport Head Customs Department in Baku seized 87 g of the synthetic cannabinoid MDMB-4en-PINACA, as well as MDMA and cocaine in a suitcase of an Azerbaijan citizen on the 27th January 2021. The passenger arrived on an Istanbul-Baku flight and was detained at the airport customs control. Countries in Central Asia are facing a growing threat posed by new psychoactive substances (NPS). A total of 119 different NPS have been reported from countries in Central Asia and Transcaucasia up to January 2021.


Source: Customs Azerbaijan 2021.

While MDMB-4en-PINACA was reported to the UNODC Early Warning System (EWA) on NPS for the first time by three European countries in 2018, in 2019 it was one of the most reported synthetic cannabinoids after 4F-MDMB-BINACA, 5F-MDMB-PINACA and 5F-MDMB-PICA. In 2020 it was among the top three synthetic cannabinoids identified, after 5F-MDMB-PICA and 4F-MDMB-BINACA.

Moreover, MDMB-4en-PINACA was reported in 14 toxicology cases submitted to the UNODC EWA from Asia and Europe. In all cases, the substance was found as a result of a clinical admission.

Taking into account data from the UNODC Early Warning Advisory on NPS, MDMB-4en-PINACA, was identified as one of the priority NPS to be critically reviewed by the World Health Organization’s Expert Committee on Drug Dependence, and recommended for scheduling under Schedule II of the Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971 in December 2020, a decision the Commission on Narcotic Drugs may take at its April 2021 meeting.

For more information please see:

Customs Azerbaijan 2021 – Statement, Photo and Video of the drug seizure of 27th January 2021

Newsclip December 2020 – WHO: World Health Organization recommends 8 NPS for scheduling

WHO 2020 – Critical Review Report: MDMB-4en-PINACA

UNODC Early Warning Advisory – Tox portal

UNODC 2020 – Global Synthetic Drug Assessment – Regional Overview Asia and Oceania