TOURISTS visiting Colombia are being targeted by criminal gangs using a frightening substance called Devil’s Breath, a mind-altering chemical that transforms victims into obedient “zombies” who are then robbed, kidnapped, or even killed.
Scopolamine, also referred to as burundanga, is a potent drug extracted from the seeds of the Borrachero tree and was once experimented with by the CIA as a truth serum.
In doses as small as 10mg, it can paralyse victims and leave them highly susceptible to commands, making them easy prey for criminals.
Victims lose their will, forget what happened, and often hand over PINs, valuables and passwords without a fight.
Colombian gangs are now administering the drug to unsuspecting tourists through drinks, chewing gum, cigarettes, or even business cards laced with the substance, often after enticing them via apps like Tinder or Grindr. Unfortunately, the number of victims is increasing.
Murders, robberies & warnings
In a UK first, the drug was used in 2019 to murder Irish dancer Adrian Murphy.
Teen killer Diana Cristea and her boyfriend Joel Osei met him on Grindr, poisoned him with scopolamine, and ransacked his flat.
They were later convicted of murder and attempted murder of a second victim.
In Colombia, foreign visitor deaths rose by 29% last year. Robberies in Medellín alone soared by 200% in the last quarter of 2023, prompting international warnings.
The US Embassy warned: “The use of online dating apps can increase your risk. Be cautious meeting strangers.”
Backstreet chemists can extract 90% pure scopolamine with little more knowledge than a second-year science student.
In grapefruit juice, the drug is even more potent because the juice slows the body’s ability to break it down.
UK scientist’s brutal death
British-based scientist Alessandro Coatti, 42, was on holiday in Santa Marta last month when he was lured to an abandoned house via Grindr.
There, investigators believe he was drugged, bludgeoned to death, dismembered, and stuffed into suitcases.
His remains were found scattered across the city, discovered by horrified children.
Only his head, hands and feet have been recovered.
Mayor Carlos Pinedo Cuello said: “We are offering a reward of fifty million Colombian pesos for information that will allow us to identify and capture those responsible. This crime will not go unpunished.”
Coatti, a Royal Society of Biology scientist, had been travelling in South America after leaving his job to volunteer in Ecuador.
He was identified by a hotel wristband found on one of his severed limbs.
While the exact cause of death for the Italian scientist remains officially unconfirmed, there is speculation that he may have been drugged with scopolamine prior to his murder.
The ‘Scopolamine Queen’
One of the masterminds behind this chilling criminal trend is alleged gang boss Carolina Mejía Montoya, 27, nicknamed “The Queen of Scopolamine.”
She was arrested in Medellín after years of drugging and robbing foreign tourists in luxury apartments and hotels across the tourist hotspots of El Poblado and Parque Lleras.
She racked up millions in thefts, using her beauty to gain the trust of high-profile visitors.
In one night alone, she stole more than 120 million pesos from an Italian and an American man, police said.
CCTV captured her leading victims into short-term rentals before drugging them and fleeing with their cash, cards and jewellery.
Mejía, part of the La Marina gang, had previously been granted house arrest in a gun case — only to vanish and continue her spree.
‘You do anything they say’
Victims describe the effect of the drug as hypnotic and horrifying.
Fernando, a 64-year-old Brit, believes he was drugged while on a work trip to Bogotá in 2012.
He told The Telegraph: “It’s very dangerous because you’re totally hypnotised, you do anything they say.”
He said he blacked out after sipping a spiked beer and woke up the next day with €1,000 gone.
Security later confirmed he’d wandered back to his hotel, retrieved a card from his safe, and left again—while still under the influence.
“It does something to your brain where you forget completely… it’s like a vacuum,” he added.
Too late to remember
Others haven’t been so lucky. Colombian TikTok user “Manning” recalled being drugged after a Tinder date — waking up six hours later in a ransacked apartment, his valuables, designer clothes and even his flip-flops gone.
“It was the worst experience. I woke up and found myself lying in my apartment, a mess,” he said, according to Infobae.
Security footage showed the date calmly leaving with stolen suitcases.
And it’s not just apps or nightlife.
In Bogotá, scopolamine has been sprinkled on ATMs, notebooks, and even jackets to target unsuspecting victims in daylight.
In one case at the Atlantis Shopping Center, a woman fainted after touching a keypad coated in powder.
In another, a man became disoriented after trying to help a stranger with directions near the Andino mall.
Both survived — but experts warn many do not.
“It puts the brain to sleep. You are a zombie,” Dr Sarah Cockbill, a retired consultant pharmacist, told The Telegraph.
“People do just wander round in what looks like a trance.”
Prof Kamyar Afarinkia, a toxicology expert, added: “You can get a business card, soak it in [scopolamine], let it dry and then give it to somebody.
“When they touch it, unless they wash their hands quickly, it gets absorbed under their skin.”
The drug’s popularity with criminals lies in its subtlety.
Victims won’t realise they’ve been exposed until it’s too late—and many are too embarrassed to report it.
According to the US Embassy in Bogotá, eight American citizens died in late 2023 alone from involuntary drug overdoses or suspected scopolamine-related homicides.
