Woman, 35, who took 'monkey dust' drug found dead on canal towpath

Nicola Harvey, 35, was found unconscious on a towpath in Stoke before being rushed to the Royal Stoke University Hospital where she died a week later after being in a coma

A woman suffered a brain bleed after taking monkey dust and later died, an inquest heard.

Nicola Harvey, 35, was found unresponsive on a canal towpath and rushed to the Royal Stoke University Hospital where she was placed in a coma, BristolPost reported. A week later the decision was made to switch off the ventilator and she passed away on 20 June, 2023.

An inquest into her death was told she had taken the drug known as monkey dust, which has been linked to issues including drug addiction and fatal overdoses. North Staffordshire area coroner Emma Serrano said: “Nicola suffered a bleed to the brain caused by the use of monkey dust.

"In relation to how she passed away, the evidence explains how she used monkey dust which caused a haemorrhagic stroke, causing fits and causing pressure, and she was unable to recover from that and passed away. Nicola passed away as a result of using monkey dust and her death will be recorded as in relation to drugs.” The inquest ruled her death was drug related.

Also known as Methylenedioxypyrovalerone, monkey dust was initially developed as a research chemical, it has gained notoriety for its stimulating and hallucinogenic effects. It comes in the form of white or off-white powder, which can be snorted, swallowed, or injected.