As D.C. Police investigate whether the drug "Molly" played a role in the death of a University of Virginia student last weekend, News4's I-Team dug deep to see how prevalent the drug is in the D.C. metro area.
Molly, also known as MDMA, is usually sold as a white powder in a capsule and acts as a purer reboot of ecstasy, NBC News reported.
According to records obtained by News4's I-Team, Virginia's Health Department says ecstasy was present in at least five drug-related deaths in the state during the past two years.
In Maryland, health department officials said they could not provide numbers immediately but told News4 police are seizing ecstasy in many forms throughout the state.
"It's in a powder version, we see it in a tablet version, it's around the state. You couldn't pin it down to one particular area," Angela Delpino with Maryland State Police told News4.
D.C. Health Department officials did not provide specific numbers, either, but say students as young as sixth graders have reported experimenting with amphetamines, the class of drugs ecstasy falls into.
Last weekend, New York City dance music festival "Electric Zoo" was canceled after two concert-goers in their 20s died from apparent molly usage. This week, police say the death of a U.Va. student who collapsed at a D.C. club may also be linked to Molly usage.
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Pop star Miley Cyrus mentioned molly in one of her recent hits, "We Can't Stop."
