Latest news with #Rohypnol
Sunday World
a day ago
- Sunday World
Gardaí on alert over increase in number of drugs being obtained for use in sexual assaults on partners
Gardaí have been advised by international police agency Europol to take 'preventative and cautionary measures' on the crime, which is happening more frequently in homes as opposed to nightclubs. An alert has been issued to gardaí about an increase in the number of drugs that are being procured by sexual predators to facilitate rapes and assaults on unsuspecting partners. Gardaí have been advised by international police agency Europol to take 'preventative and cautionary measures' on the crime, which is happening more frequently in homes as opposed to nightclubs. Sexual abusers are ordering the substances online – which are often disguised in cosmetic products – and drugging their partners without their knowledge. Officers have listed four main drugs commonly used, including potent benzodiazepines like flunitrazepam (Rohypnol). 'The background to this alert is the high-profile case that recently occurred in France,' a source said, referring to Gisele Pelicot, who was repeatedly drugged and raped by her ex-husband, Dominique Pelicot, and dozens of men, without her knowledge, over a decade. 'The Garda National Protective Services Bureau (GNPSB) is aware of that case, and it is understood that a detective from that unit sent a memo to all gardaí about dealing with this particular type of crime.' After the sedatives are procured online, they are often stored in hiding places in the home or in the car, with the victim having no knowledge of what is going on. The abusers are often people who the victims have been in a close and trusting relationship with for many years. International police say investigations show that footage is often distributed or shared, with the abusers discussing how the victims would never allow these sexual acts in a conscious state. The victims usually have no memory of the sexual abuse and are completely unaware of what has happened to them. 'The belief is that similar crimes are occurring in our jurisdiction right now and have done so in the past, but not on the scale we saw in France,' the source added. Gisele Pelicot was drugged and raped by her husband and other men. Photo: Reuters 'This is not your typical nightclub scenario which gardaí find very difficult to investigate. This is a warning about targeted and deliberate abuse in a domestic situation.' In a statement, An Garda Síochána said it would advise victims of any form of 'spiking' to come forward and report the incidents to gardaí. 'An Garda Síochána takes all reports of spiking very seriously and continue to investigate to determine the nature of every incident reported to us, including results of toxicology reports in each case,' a spokesperson said. 'Any incident of this type of crime, including those with evidence to suggest a link with 'spiking', will be investigated by either local gardaí supported by or attached to divisional protective services units.' Ms Pelicot (72) said 'police saved my life' when they investigated her husband's computer in November 2020, after a security guard caught him filming women in a supermarket in southern France. Police said they found a file labelled 'abuses' on a USB drive connected to his computer that contained 20,000 images and films of his wife being raped almost 100 times. He admitted to inviting dozens of strangers over nearly ten years to their house to rape her after he had drugged her. He was found guilty and sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Bangkok Post
a day ago
- Bangkok Post
Police net 5 more linked to drug ring
Five more suspects have been arrested in connection with an alleged drug trafficking network headed by Pol Col Dr Anchulee Theerawongpaisan, a senior psychiatrist at the Police General Hospital. The psychiatrist is accused of orchestrating the illegal distribution of prescription medications. According to a news report, the Narcotics Suppression Bureau (NSB) has expanded its investigation following the June 11 arrest of Dr Anchulee and six other suspects. On Tuesday, arrest warrants were issued for the five new suspects, whose names have not been disclosed, on charges of conspiracy to commit a serious narcotics offence. During the latest operation, police seized approximately 80,000 pills of controlled substances, including 17,000 alprazolam tablets, 40,180 zolpidem tartrate pills, 7,500 Rohypnol pills, 10,100 clonazepam pills, and 5,000 Polizep 5 pills. Authorities also confiscated assets valued at over 22 million baht, said the reporter. The initial arrests earlier this month led to the seizure of assets worth more than 500 million baht. Those detained, namely Dr Anchulee, Duriyaluk Upachai, Natthaphat Kirachot, Pakorn Chanthep, Orachun Chantaranam, and siblings Patchara and Patcharamon (surnames withheld), face multiple charges.
7NEWS
2 days ago
- 7NEWS
‘I started to feel numb': Woman recalls syringe attack at French music festival
It was around 1.30am, after the crowds had thinned from the streets of Bordeaux, when Manon felt the prick of a hypodermic needle going into her arm. 'Someone tapped my left forearm. I started to feel numb in the muscle, like you do when you get a vaccine. After about 30 minutes, the injection mark appeared,' she said. Despite not knowing what she had been injected with – or who had done it – she said she 'didn't want to panic.' Manon, 22, was one of nearly 150 people in France who reported being pricked with syringes during a nationwide street music festival at the weekend. According to the interior ministry, it remains unclear if date-rape drugs such as Rohypnol or GHB were used in the 'needle spiking' attacks, which took place across the country and appear to have involved multiple perpetrators. Ahead of the festival, which drew crowds of millions of people to the streets, a feminist influencer had warned that calls had been made on social media for women to be targeted with syringes. After spending 4am to 7am on Sunday in the emergency room, Manon shared a video of her experience on TikTok. 'It was important for me to raise awareness, because I hadn't seen any testimonies from people who had been injected,' said Manon, who declined to give her last name for safety reasons. 'We had been told on social media to be careful, but I think people want to know more – how it happens, the symptoms, how it unfolds. 'It reassured me to talk about it, because at the time, I was completely alone.' 'I told myself I wasn't going to let it defeat me' After she got home from the hospital, Manon filed a police report. 'It's important because if we're too lax, if we say, 'oh, others will file complaints', nothing ever changes. I told myself maybe it can have an impact.' Since Saturday, French police have detained 14 men aged between 19 and 44 and including both French citizens and foreign nationals, police spokeswoman Agathe Foucault told Radio France. But authorities have made no arrests in connection with the needle spikings. 'The police have not identified any perpetrators behind the injections, but the incidents are confirmed,' Minister of Justice Gérald Darmanin told CNN affiliate BFMTV Tuesday. The minister said authorities would also pursue those who had called for the attacks online. 'We are implementing a criminal policy to prosecute those responsible on social media for these very unhealthy injection games targeting women,' Darmanin said. The feminist influencer Abrège Soeur, who before the festival had warned men on social media were planning such attacks, told CNN the perpetrators' 'objective isn't only to drug women. It's to instill fear in them.' 'When people start saying that there will be needle attacks, it spreads in the form of rumor,' she said. 'Some people mention it in group chats, others pick it up, it just gets amplified.' Manon, who faces a wait of three weeks for her toxicology results, said she had 'barely slept the last few days' but refuses to be cowed by her experience. 'The Fête de la Musique is meant to be a time of good vibes, music, dancing, having fun. Someone wanted to ruin that moment, to kill that spirit. I told myself I wasn't going to let it defeat me. I don't want to be sad or angry. I don't want to let them win.'
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
Syringe attacks during France's music street festival leave 145 jabbed and several hospitalised
French police have detained 12 suspects after nearly 150 people reported being assaulted with syringes across France during its annual "Fête de la Musique" summer festival. The outdoor festival took place all over France last Saturday, with authorities reporting "unprecedented crowds" in Paris. The Interior Ministry said that 145 people nationwide had reported being stabbed with needles, with Paris police reporting 13 cases in the capital. Upwards of a dozen women and underaged girls have been hospitalised. 'The ministry is taking this very seriously,' a spokeswoman from the Interior Ministry stated. "Some victims were taken to hospital for toxicological tests and the investigation is ongoing," the ministry added. Officials have yet to say if these were cases of needle spiking with date-rape drugs such as Rohypnol or GHB, but the drugs rendered victims confused and vulnerable to sexual assault. Ahead of the festival, influencers like Abrège Soeur warned that calls had been made on social media for women to be targeted with syringes. Paris police chief Laurent Nuñez todl French broadcaster CNews: 'These are extremely serious incidents,' calling the online calls to inject women 'completely idiotic.' Two men were also arrested in the centre of the north-eastern city of Metz on suspicion of syringe attacks. The mayor of Metz, François Grosdidier, took to social media to address the situation: 'On social networks, a call for syringe assaults has been launched during the Music Festivals in major cities. It happened in two other cities in Moselle and all over France… 17 young girls (ages 14-20) were victimized in #Metz.' Grosdidier continued: 'A description of a syringe attacker was shared with the Urban Supervision Center (CSU) to help locate him on video footage, as well as with the municipal and national police. Municipal police officers identified him on Rue Serpenoise, arrested him, and handed him over to the National Police and judicial authorities. I hope the investigation – especially examining his mobile phone – will help identify other attackers.' Police said more than 370 people were detained nationwide during the festival on various charges. A reported fourteen participants in the festivities were seriously injured, including a 17-year-old who was hospitalised after being found sitting on the street with stab wounds to the lower abdomen. Thirteen members of law enforcement were also injured. This isn't the first time that syringe attacks targeting women have taken place. Similar cases took place in France in June 2022. Several suspects around France were detained for allegedly pricking people with a needle in nightclubs or at concerts. At the time, the French Ministry of the Interior confirmed to Euronews that 80 per cent of the targets were young women. French police tallied over 400 reports at the time, saying that the motive of the jabs was unclear. In Spain, the number of women reporting being jabbed with medical needles while at nightclubs or parties rose to 60 in 2022, according to the country's interior minister. There were similar incidents in the UK in 2021, prompting the British Parliament to publish a report in April 2022 about spiking cases.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Yahoo
Syringe attacks during France's music street festival leave 145 jabbed and several hospitalised
French police have detained 12 suspects after nearly 150 people reported being assaulted with syringes across France during its annual "Fête de la Musique" summer festival. The outdoor festival took place all over France last Saturday, with authorities reporting "unprecedented crowds" in Paris. The Interior Ministry said that 145 people nationwide had reported being stabbed with needles, with Paris police reporting 13 cases in the capital. Upwards of a dozen women and underaged girls have been hospitalised. 'The ministry is taking this very seriously,' a spokeswoman from the Interior Ministry stated. "Some victims were taken to hospital for toxicological tests and the investigation is ongoing," the ministry added. Officials have yet to say if these were cases of needle spiking with date-rape drugs such as Rohypnol or GHB, but the drugs rendered victims confused and vulnerable to sexual assault. Ahead of the festival, influencers like Abrège Soeur warned that calls had been made on social media for women to be targeted with syringes. Paris police chief Laurent Nuñez todl French broadcaster CNews: 'These are extremely serious incidents,' calling the online calls to inject women 'completely idiotic.' Two men were also arrested in the centre of the north-eastern city of Metz on suspicion of syringe attacks. The mayor of Metz, François Grosdidier, took to social media to address the situation: 'On social networks, a call for syringe assaults has been launched during the Music Festivals in major cities. It happened in two other cities in Moselle and all over France… 17 young girls (ages 14-20) were victimized in #Metz.' Grosdidier continued: 'A description of a syringe attacker was shared with the Urban Supervision Center (CSU) to help locate him on video footage, as well as with the municipal and national police. Municipal police officers identified him on Rue Serpenoise, arrested him, and handed him over to the National Police and judicial authorities. I hope the investigation – especially examining his mobile phone – will help identify other attackers.' Police said more than 370 people were detained nationwide during the festival on various charges. A reported fourteen participants in the festivities were seriously injured, including a 17-year-old who was hospitalised after being found sitting on the street with stab wounds to the lower abdomen. Thirteen members of law enforcement were also injured. This isn't the first time that syringe attacks targeting women have taken place. Similar cases took place in France in June 2022. Several suspects around France were detained for allegedly pricking people with a needle in nightclubs or at concerts. At the time, the French Ministry of the Interior confirmed to Euronews that 80 per cent of the targets were young women. French police tallied over 400 reports at the time, saying that the motive of the jabs was unclear. In Spain, the number of women reporting being jabbed with medical needles while at nightclubs or parties rose to 60 in 2022, according to the country's interior minister. There were similar incidents in the UK in 2021, prompting the British Parliament to publish a report in April 2022 about spiking cases.
