The nightmare of crack cocaine addiction was spelt out today at the start of a new police campaign.
A 34-year-old mum told how her obsession with the drug led to five of her children being taken away from her.
The former addict described her experiences to warn others about the drug's dangers.
She spoke out as Crimestoppers and Essex Police start a campaign to encourage witnesses to drug dealing to report it anonymously.
They warn that crack has started to take hold in the county, causing hundreds of crimes and raising fears that violent gangs could move in.
Colchester is a hotspot for dealers and users of the drug and police also fear that, as the problem grows, Chelmsford could experience more problems, too.
Today, in a bid to stop the growing use of crack spiralling out of control, the police and Crimestoppers launch Crack Under Pressure.
By raising the profile of the problem, they hope the campaign will encourage people to use the anonymous Crimestoppers number to feed them information.
Contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555111
Published Wednesday May 26, 2004
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