Ogun Government Sounds Alarm Over Deadly ‘Bluetoothing’ Drug Trend

The Ogun State Government has issued a stark warning to young people to avoid the dangerous drug practice known as “bluetoothing,” a rising trend where individuals inject themselves with the blood of someone who has just consumed hard drugs in an attempt to “share the high.”

In a statement released in Abeokuta on Thursday, Dr. Kehinde Fatungase, Executive Secretary of the Ogun State Agency for the Control of AIDS, described the practice as life-threatening and deeply destructive. He warned that bluetoothing exposes participants to HIV, Hepatitis B and C, severe bloodstream infections, overdose, and other fatal complications.

Fatungase stressed that the practice undermines public health efforts and puts countless young people in direct danger. He encouraged anyone struggling with drug use to seek help at the state’s Key Population One Stop Shop facility in Abeokuta, where treatment and counselling are available.

He urged youths to “choose life, choose health, choose future,” and reject the practice entirely.

The trend also known in some regions as “flashblood”has been reported in countries like South Africa, Tanzania, and Fiji, where health authorities have linked it to spikes in HIV and other infections.

In response, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, alongside community groups and the Pyrates Confraternity, has intensified sensitisation campaigns across schools, religious centres, and communities, reaching over 30,000 people. The Ogun Ministry of Sports Development is also partnering with youth-focused NGOs such as the Drug Free Project to use sports as a tool for awareness and rehabilitation.