Theft of drugs from vets

Freedom of Information (FOI) Act request ref: 01/FIN/26/004368/H

Version Date: 16/03/2026

I request the following information for the period 1 January 2023 to present:
1.         The number of reported thefts of xylazine and/or medetomidine from veterinary practices, veterinary hospitals, agricultural suppliers, or veterinary pharmaceutical suppliers in your force area.
2.         The total quantity (in ml, mg, or number of vials/bottles) of xylazine and/or medetomidine reported stolen in each incident.
3.         Any intelligence assessments or reports produced by your force concerning the diversion of veterinary sedatives (xylazine, medetomidine, or other veterinary tranquilizers) into illicit drug markets.
4.         The number of arrests made in connection with theft of veterinary sedatives (xylazine, medetomidine) where the suspected motive was diversion to illicit drug supply.
5.         Any drug seizures where xylazine and/or medetomidine were detected in substances sold as illicit drugs (heroin, benzodiazepines, opioids, etc.).

The Performance Analysis Department and the Intelligence Department have provided the following information:

The Performance Analysis Department completed searches in Niche for all theft occurrences within main crime groups and searched for the keywords ‘xylazine’ and ‘medetomidine’. This resulted a nil return.

They then searched the CrimSec28 drug seizures report and amended the dates to show all occurrences for 1st January 2023 to 18th February 2026, and this also resulted in a nil return.

The Intelligence Department has also confirmed that they have seen no intelligence related to veterinary sedatives and have produced no intelligence products in respect of these.