What is 'pink cocaine'? Linked to designer drug Liam Payne and named in DD lawsuit

LOS ANGELES (KABC) — A partial autopsy has revealed that former One Direction singer Liam Payne had multiple substances in his system when he plunged to his death from a third-floor balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Toxicology results showed he was in possession of a mixture of drugs called “pink cocaine.”

“The first component that we almost always see in pink or pink cocaine is ketamine — a dissociative drug, something that makes people feel like they're disconnected from reality,” said former DEA agent Bill Bodner. “The second ingredient is psychedelics.”

Bodner says that despite its name, the drug's toxic mix often contains no cocaine, including synthetics like ecstasy, methamphetamine and benzodiazepines.

Its name comes from the bright pink color derived from food coloring and may include strawberry flavor which can be taken as a pill or inhaled.

Pink cocaine is also known by its street name “Toosy” or “Toosy” and acts as both a stimulant and a depressant.

“It's very cheap to manufacture and they can tailor drugs to what drug users are looking for,” Bodner said.

Pink cocaine began as a party drug in nightclubs in Latin America.

Recently, it was linked to Sean “Diddy” Combs in a lawsuit filed by his former music producer Rodney Jones.

He alleged that “all employees, from butlers, chefs, to housekeepers, had to carry around pouches or fanny packs filled with cocaine, GHB, ecstasy, marijuana gummies (100-250 mg each), and tussy (a pink one). Drugs that included ecstasy and combination of cocaine).”

But like any drug there are several dangerous side effects in the body and the user's perception of reality.

“One of the things around mixing is that people's behavior can become unpredictable and they may do things they wouldn't otherwise do,” said Dr. Brian Hurley, an addiction psychiatrist at the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.

Law enforcement and public health officials are warning parents that the designer drug — with its bright colors — is growing in popularity among a target audience ranging from teenagers to young adults.

“No matter where you live or how isolated you feel from street drugs, now with smartphones and social media, everyone lives in an open-air drug market,” Bodner said.