After Britain and France, Spain witnesses a recent surge in needle attacks on women possibly with spiked syringes in crowded clubs as Spanish police are investigating a string of similar cases.
Over the past few weeks, the attacks have been reported either to police or on social media which have raised fears that sexual predators might have found a variant on spiking drinks to prey on women.
However, the police are yet to find any trace of drugs or other toxic products associated with the cases. So far, no cases of related sexual violence has been reported as well..
Spain registered its first attacks in early July, during the Pamplona bull running festival.
So far, police have registered 23 cases in Catalonia, most of which are from the tourist town of Lloret de Mar and in Barcelona, and 12 in the Basque Country.
According to Spanish police, the victims' accounts are similar. The woman, usually a young woman, is out partying when she feels a needle prick in the arm or leg and then becomes dizzy or drowsy.
Attacks in France, Britain
Previously, more than 300 people across France have reported being pricked out of the blue with needles at nightclubs or concerts in recent months. Doctors and multiple prosecutors are on the case, but no one knows who’s doing it or why, and whether the victims have been injected with drugs — or indeed any substance at all.
Club owners and police are trying to raise awareness, and a rapper even interrupted his recent show to warn concert-goers about the risk of surprise needle attacks.
It’s not just France: Britain’s government is studying a spate of “needle spiking” there, and police in Belgium and the Netherlands are investigating scattered cases too.
On May 4, 18-year-old Tomas Laux attended a rap concert in Lille in northern France, where he smoked a bit of marijuana and drank some alcohol during the show. When he came home, he told The Associated Press, he was feeling dizzy and had a headache – and he spotted a strange little skin puncture on his arm and a bruise.
The next morning, the symptoms didn’t disappear and Laux went to his doctor, who advised him to go to the emergency room. Medics confirmed evidence of a needle prick, and Laux was tested for HIV and hepatitis. His results came out negative, like other victims’ so far.
Hundreds of kilometers (miles) away, Leanne Desnos recounted a similar experience after going to a club in the southwest city of Bordeaux in April. Desnos, also 18, passed out the next day, and felt dizzy and had hot flashes while at a fast food restaurant. When she got home, she realized she had an injection mark on her arm. After having seen testimony on social media about the mystery pricks, she went to a clinic to get tested for infections. She is still awaiting results.
People from Paris, Toulouse, Nantes, Nancy, Rennes, and other cities around France have reported being pricked with a needle without their knowledge or permission. The targeted individuals, who are mostly women, show visible marks of injection, often bruises, and report symptoms like feeling groggy.
France’s national police agency says 302 people have filed formal complaints about such needle pricks. Several police investigations are ongoing in different regions, but no suspect has been arrested yet, no needle has been found and the motive remains unclear.
No victims have reported sexual assault; one said he was robbed, in Grenoble in April, according to Le Monde newspaper.
Two people tested positive for GHB, and they might have ingested the drug in a drink, according to an official with the national police agency. GHB, a powerful anesthetic used by predators seeking to sexually abuse or assault victims, can be detected in the urine only for 12 hours, the police official said.
The official and a doctor who is taking a leading role in dealing with the phenomenon expressed doubt that the nightclub pricks contained GHB, noting that to penetrate via needle, the drug needs to be injected for several seconds, which most victims would notice.
(With agency inputs)
