Illicit drugs are not immune to the laws of supply and demand. So it was no surprise when reports of black market price rises started filtering in from around the world after the onset of the coronavirus pandemic last year.
But while lockdowns, closed borders and fewer flights could all be blamed for the spikes, the United States Drug Enforcement Agency found in at least some cases, the motivation was pure greed.
And while similar price rises in Australia and Europe have been linked to users cutting back, one Australian expert warns that s unlikely to last.
READ MORE:
A photo of a 2018 meth haul in Australia.(AFP)
American daughter of Mexico s fugitive cartel leader pleads guilty dailymail.co.uk - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from dailymail.co.uk Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Jessica Oseguera reportedly reached a deal with United States authorities
Documents filed in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday indicate she will plead guilty at a court hearing on Friday
Seguera is the American-born daughter of Nemesio El Mencho Oseguera
She was arrested in February 2020 while attending a court session for her jailed brother, Rubén El Menchito Oseguera, in Washington, D.C.
El Mencho is the leader of Jalisco New Generation Cartel, seen by many as one of the two most powerful criminal organizations in Mexico
According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, the cartel is No. 2 behind Joaquín El Chapo Guzmán s Sinaloa Cartel in the U.S.
Ecuadorean security forces seize jet abandoned on airstrip that had flown in from Mexico - and find $19 million worth of cocaine inside
At least 400 kilos of cocaine worth $19 million were seized from a Mexican jet in the southern Ecuadorean province of Santa Elena on March 2
The National Police of Ecuador said in a statement that jet was found parked on a private airstrip by security forces as part of operation Grand Impact 10
The shipment was comprised of 400 packages, each labeled with a logo
It s not clear what the logos referred to, and the police didn t release details
The DEA s 2020 National Drug Threat Assessment lists nine Mexican cartels, including El Chapo s Sinaloa Cartel, as the major importers of drugs to the U.S. in 2020.