Spiking reports go up in the city

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Up to seven monument conservation unit staff, masons, joiners, painters and labourers currently work from the depot, alongside two visitor operations staff.

MORE people have come forward to report being spiked in Dundee in 2021 than the last six years combined.

Police have recorded at least 16 cases of spiking in the city this year, compared with 14 between 2015 and 2020.

Thirteen of this year’s incidents were recorded between August and October.

Officers say there has been a reduction in reports since that time but have vowed to continue to investigate any allegations.

The rise this year coincided with a spate of high-profile alleged spikings at pubs and clubs across the country, with reports of people using needles to inject revellers.

Of the 16 cases reported in Dundee between January and October, one was recorded as being administered for “sexual purposes” while the rest fell under drugging with “no further intent”.

Just one of the cases was recorded as “detected”, meaning it had been cleared up by police.

Data also shows that instances of spiking have been less common elsewhere in Tayside and Fife.

Four were recorded in Fife in the same timeframe, with one each in Angus and Perth and Kinross.

The figures also show that women are five times more likely than men to be the reported victims of spiking, while those in the 18-25 age group are the most commonly targeted.

A spate of spiking incidents was reported across Scotland in September and October.

While some related to drugs being placed in a person’s drink, many involved a drug being injected using a needle.

In Dundee, the first publicised incident was reported at Captain’s Cabin on Ward Road, where one customer claimed that she had been spiked after being injected. Just days later, another woman issued a warning on social media after she claimed she had been turned away by bouncers while standing in the queue at Underground nightclub and later found an injection mark under the shorts she had been wearing.

The incidents led to a boycott of some night-time venues and came amid a wider debate around women’s safety.

Ann Hamilton, chairwoman of the Dundee Violence Against Women Partnership, said spiking is used by people to exert “abusive behaviour”.

Assistant Chief Constable Gary Ritchie from Police Scotland said: “We continue to investigate reports.”

Ann Hamilton