Heroin warning after three deaths

Three people have died after taking heroin over the past few days

A bad batch of heroin may be the cause of three sudden deaths and an overdose, police have said.

Lothian and Borders Police said all the deaths, two men and a woman, appeared to be drug-related and all occurred in the Leith area.

An 18-year-old from the west of the city is in hospital.

Officers have warned drug users to be on their guard and seek medical attention if they think they have been affected.

On Tuesday a 20-year-old man was found dead in bed in a house in Leith.

We have had three sudden deaths all appearing to be heroin-related in a very short space of time Police spokeswoman

Then an ambulance was called to an address in Wester Hailes on Wednesday where an 18-year-old man had overdosed after allegedly taking a cocktail of drugs, which is believed to have included heroin.

On Thursday, a 41-year-old woman was found dead at an address in Leith and in a separate incident a 28-year-old man was found dead, also in Leith.

A police spokeswoman said: "We are concerned about the fact that we have had three sudden deaths all appearing to be heroin related in a very short space of time and one overdose.

"We are also investigating the suggestion that there may be a bad batch of the drug currently being sold in the city."

Reports will be submitted to the procurator fiscal and post mortems and toxicology tests will be carried out on all of the victims.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police or call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.