what do we know about needle spiking?
First of all, how common is needle spiking?
The Amsterdam police confirmed this week on several cases of the puncture needle have been to Amsterdam nightclubs. There are hardly any figures yet, because messages have been made at several agencies throughout the country and these reports were often written under other crimes. It is also still being investigated whether it is indeed a needle prick, or whether there could be something else going on. The police therefore stick to a ‘handful’ of reports and reports. Their complaints are very similar.
What do we know about the substances used?
When drugged in the nightlife, the drug GHB is often thrown into someone’s drink. GHB is out of the blood within half a day, consequences could have been difficult to prove. The symptoms of GHB and alcohol poisoning are also similar.
With needle spiking, GHB in its regular form is not an option, because a large amount of liquid is required. It can be submitted unnoticed. GHB is also a viscous liquid, which is less suitable for an injection needle.
In case of incidents different types of benzodiazepine were used in the UK, a substance that makes you drowsy and sleepy. In theory, men can test for these substances longer than for GHB, but in the Netherlands no foreign substance was found in the blood in all reports of spiking. Another problem is that you need to know you need to test to trace a substance. If there is more information about water being used, it can also be established more quickly that someone has been drugged.
What do we know about the perpetrators?
Virtually nothing; no arrests have been made yet.
Does needle sticking happen a lot in other countries?
There are applications from France and Belgium, but mainly in the United Kingdom to play. According to the British newspaper the guard between September 2021 and last January there were 1,300 reports of puncture needle – in the whole of 2019 there were 1900 declarations related to drug use. A considerable increase, certainly because British society was still partly locked in 2021 due to corona. Last autumn a ‘Boycott the Night’ campaign was held, thousands of British young people across the country to go to nightclubs until they are safer plans.
What should you do if you suspect you have been drugged?
Go to a doctor’s office as soon as possible. For your own health, but also to be able to be drugged. In this way, the used substance can be identified more quickly and future help can be provided more quickly. It is therefore important to make a report, even if the indication for investigation is brief, a police spokesperson admits.
What can nightclubs themselves do about needle spiking?
The Amsterdam nightclubs do their best to monitor everything as well as possible with doormen and cameras, says Pieter de Kroon of Overleg Amsterdam Clubs (OAC), but they can’t do much more. “The perpetrators are just very shrewd at hiding their resources.” The staff has been asked to pay extra attention. Next week there will be a meeting between the clubs, the municipality and Jellinek to look at additional solutions.