‘Sadist’ injected me for fun, says spiking victim
WOMEN and men are being targeted for ‘comedic effect’ by ‘sadistic’ drink spikers, MPs heard yesterday.
Witnesses told a House of Commons inquiry they believed some spiking incidents are carried out purely for ‘power and control’.
While many druggings are linked with sexual offences or thefts, some cases were harder to explain, the home affairs committee heard.
One victim, Zara Owen, told of how she awoke with no memory of a night out in a Nottingham nightclub last year and later discovered a ‘pin prick’ mark in her leg. She told MPs she believed she had been injected with a ‘narcotic’ that caused her to behave peculiarly.
Asked about why attackers strike, she said: ‘I think their main motivation is for humour and comedic effect. I feel that some people must do it for the thrill of it. It is sadistic and abhorrent.’
Hannah Stratton, 51, said she unknowingly consumed a spiked drink when she visited a ‘quiet’ bar near her home in Newquay, Cornwall. She was left incapable after two glasses of wine and had to be helped home by friends.
She believes she was drugged ‘for fun’ by an unknown perpetrator who realised a group of middleaged women would not leave one of their friends to be exploited.
‘Within their circles, they believe it’s primarily done for fun, just for the power and control of being able to see somebody so uncomfortable,’ she told the committee. Miss Stratton, who has three daughters, said victims of spiking struggled with feelings of ‘shame’, even though they are blameless.
‘You feel so disgusted in yourself,’ she said. ‘It takes a while to realise I shouldn’t be blaming myself. That’s why I didn’t report it.
‘I’ve never behaved like that in my life and I’m not going to after a couple of glasses of wine.’
The witnesses called for an anonymous online reporting system to help overcome embarrassment among victims.
Helena Conibear, chief executive of the Alcohol Education Trust, said surveys suggest up to 15 per cent of females and up to seven per cent of males have been spiked.
The organisation’s research indicates it occurs in less obvious places than clubs and bars, such as fast food outlets and cafes, with the largest proportion occurring at private parties.