Teen drug deals through apps like Snapchat are on the rise amid the pandemic

SCOTTSDALE, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) — A new disturbing trend — kids are doing drug deals on the down low, using their smartphones. The result can have deadly consequences, and it’s on the rise due to the pandemic.We know kids, especially teens, spent a majority of their time online this past year. Mental health experts say that’s led to more opportunity for them to experiment, in some cases, buying drugs without their parents knowing until it’s too late. First, it’d happen at school. But then, the school shutdowns during the pandemic didn’t matter.”It happened a lot through the smartphone. It happened a lot. Once we starting realizing, she started sneaking it into social media instant messaging,” said a mom of a 16-year-old daughter who asked we keep them both anonymous. She said this past year they lived a nightmare.”In the beginning, it was marijuana, but slowly turned to LSD,” she said. “There were pills involved of an unknown substance, fentanyl at times.”Her daughter found every way possible to get drugs. Her parents got her into an outpatient substance abuse program, but it didn’t work.”Even there, she relapsed 2-3 times and ended up having to go to a resident wilderness program,” her…
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