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Using drugs? Your touch can give you away

By Helen Anne Travis, Times Staff Writer
In print: Sunday, September 21, 2008

	[WILL VRAGOVIC | Times]

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SPRING HILL — John Consoli wants to get rid of drugs in the workplace, one telephone handset at a time. • Consoli, 67, is the president of On Site, a Spring Hill company marketing DrugWipe, a handheld narcotic detector. • Just swipe the DrugWipe against a keyboard or any other surface, Consoli said, and the toothbrush-size detector can tell whether anyone who has touched the surface in the past 72 hours had drugs in his or her system. "It is 100 percent accurate," Consoli said. "It is the only product that I know of that is defensible in court."

The technology comes from Europe, where law enforcement tested suspected "drugged drivers." DrugWipe also has been used in the United States by the FBI, DEA and Customs Service, Consoli said.

Now, he wants to bring it to the private sector. DrugWipe could be used by businesses that suspect their employees are using or trafficking drugs.

The device tests for cocaine, cannabis, methamphetamine and opiates. Because the drugs travel from the user's glands and are deposited on the surface, there's almost no way to fool the test.

"It's in your system. If you've done drugs, it's in your glands," Consoli said. "How do you adulterate your sweat?"

Pinning down a corporation that used DrugWipe was difficult. Since Consoli is just starting out, he hasn't actually had any clients. The corporations that he said have used it in the past didn't want to talk to the press because of privacy issues, he said.

A DrugWipe kit costs about $50 and can be used to check 10 to 15 surfaces. Testers must be trained and certified. Training takes a half day and costs $500.

Companies can also hire an On Site professional to test workplace surfaces; prices vary.

If more than one person has touched the soiled keyboard or headset, the company can put the suspected users through a saliva or blood test.

"What DrugWipe is there to do in terms of corporations and businesses is to identify if a problem exists," Consoli said. "Then we can go the next step."

Helen Anne Travis can be reached at htravis@sptimes.com or (813) 435-7312.