New York state is taking steps to address the illegal sale of the drug K2 following a mass overdose in Brooklyn that sent 33 people to the hospital.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo says Thursday that state police will increase enforcement of laws banning the substance, which is a type of synthetic marijuana.
The Democratic governor says the "evolution" of synthetic drugs presents "an alarming public health risk."
State health officials and other regulators will also participate in the effort, which is focused on bodegas and other shops that illegally sell K2.
Five bodegas in Brooklyn were raided by police Wednesday following Tuesday's mass overdose. Witnesses reported seeing victims lying on the sidewalk, shaking and leaning against trees and fire hydrants in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood.
© 2016 Associated Press
