Mother’s agony over drugs death
Ms Birch said she had no idea her son was involved in drugs
The mother of a teenage boy who died after taking contaminated drugs has spoken of her grief and warned other youngsters of the dangers.
Kieran Birch, 17, of Westbourne Street, Hull, died after taking drugs known as “subbies”, which were being distributed across the city.
His mother Anita said she had no idea her son was involved in drugs.
She warned other teenagers: “Don’t take it, because you might not wake up, and you will leave your family.”
Ms Birch said her son was a “cheeky” youngster, who loved riding his bike and was looking forward to taking drama lessons at school.
When she got the call to go to the hospital, she thought Kieran had fallen off his bike.
Second death
Kieran was a “cheeky” teenager who loved riding his bike
She said: “The doctor came in after about 10 minutes, but it seemed like ages.
“And he said I’ve got some bad news for you. He said, ‘I’m sorry, we did all we could’.”
Just two days after Kieran’s death, his friend, 15-year-old Jason Sawyers, also died after taking the drug.
The circumstances of the deaths remain unclear, but it is believed the pair were snorting “subbies”, with a lethal combination of alcohol or other drugs.
Police said the drugs were believed to be a form of opiate derived from a painkiller called Subatex.
Subatex is manufactured in Hull by Reckitt Benckiser. The company said in a statement: “Reckitt Benckiser is co-operating fully with an ongoing police investigation and it would be innapropriate to comment further at the moment pending the outcome of the investigation.”
