Those attending New Year’s Eve parties are urged to report drink-spiking and needle-spiking immediately. Over the past year, almost 5,000 reports have been made to police forces in the UK about needle and drink spiking.
Police say it is difficult to collect evidence and prosecute offenders when drugs pass rapidly through our bodies.No matter if you took something knowingly earlier in the night, they recommend that victims should report suspected spiking and get tested.
The act of spiking involves putting alcohol or drugs into another person’s drink or body without their knowledge or consent.Besides drink-spiking, needle-spiking can also happen to people, which is when someone is injected with drugs without their consent.
UK police forces received 4,924 reports of spiking in the 12 months to September, according to the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC). In 800 tests conducted so far, cocaine, ketamine, and MDMA were the most commonly detected drugs. The presence of a controlled drug only supported spiking in 3% of cases.
Spiking by needle was the most commonly reported, with 2,581 reports, followed by drink-spiking at 2,131 reports.
Using a Drink Spike Test Kit at Home
If you, or someone else has been been spiked the best thing to do is seek medical help straight away.
A drink spike test kit look for the presence of benzodiazepine in suspected drinks or urine. Benzodiazepines, also known as benzos, are tranquillisers that produce a sedating effect. An often-used tranquilliser in date rape cases is a benzo called Rohypnol or roofies.
How To Protect Yourself Against Drink Spiking
Our blog post – how to protect yourself against drink spiking – highlights a common sense approach. To prevent being a victim of drink spiking and prevent it from happening in the future, you have to stay on top of the problem.
Drink spiking can be prevented in the following ways:
- Be sure to keep your drinks with you at all times
- If you are offered drinks by a stranger, never accept them
- Keep an eye on your drink at all times
- Use a spikey to protect the contents of a bottle
- Make sure you have a designated sober driver
Photo by Jeff Tumale on Unsplash
Zoom Testing is a leading UK drug testing company and a supplier of Drug Test Kits.
