13 caught at drug-laced birthday party in central Vietnam

A police raid on the 'Dubai' karaoke parlor in the central province’s Huong Khe District discovered six men and seven women with two packets of marijuana, three ecstasy pills, some meth and several drug-taking implements.

The people confessed they were throwing a "drug party" to celebrate a friend’s birthday.

Among the people caught were the deputy director of an unnamed bank branch in the district, a local forest ranger, a teacher and accountant at a local kindergarten.

"We are waiting for police investigation results and will not tolerate any violation," said a representative of the Huong Khe District’s Department of Education and Training.

Police raids to bust drug use at restaurants and similar places in Vietnam have happened more often of late. Earlier this month police checked a bar in Ho Chi Minh City and found dozens of people high on drugs and in possessing them. Last month, hundreds of police officers raided a popular restaurant in the city's central District 1 and held around 70 drug users and sex workers for drug test.

While heroin has long been common among users in Vietnam, the use of synthetic drugs like meth or ecstasy is on the rise, especially among partying youth.

Seven people died after using drugs at an electronic music festival in September in Hanoi, raising alarms for drug control in the country.

Around 223,000 people were found using narcotics in Vietnam last year, 12,000 more than the previous year, according to the Ministry of Public Security.

Each year, about 1,600 people die of drug overdose in Vietnam. A staggering $93.7 million is spent on buying drugs and $44.6 million on running rehab facilities.