An ice epidemic is sweeping through Australia and destroying regional towns as children as young as 11 become hooked on the deadly drug from their first hit. A Four Corners investigation has revealed there are now almost 350,000 Australians taking cheap, easily accessible and highly addictive crystal methamphetamine, nicknamed ice, which destroys the brain and creates psychotic behaviour such as users gauging away at their skin as they imagine feeling insects crawling beneath it. The ABC’s current affairs show has met with ice users, ice cooks, police and recovering addicts in Victoria and Tasmania, who painted a disturbing picture: international drug cartels are working with local bikie gangs to push ice out of the cities, and police are losing the battle to stop it.
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ABC Four Corners reporter Caro Meldrum-Hanna travelled to Victoria and Tasmania and met ice addicts whose lives have been destroyed
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'I heard tales of absolute self-destruction,' she said
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Ice is a stimulant drug, a type of methamphetamine
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It is highly addictive and destroys the brain's pleasure systems
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Addicts experience psychosis and many use violence to feed their habit
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Caro met a crystal meth cook without 'any protection, no suits – this isn't Breaking Bad… at just 19-years-old his body was falling apart'
In one community of less than 4,000 people @placeholder found up to one in ten people are using ice.