A teenager required CPR, and a mother-of-two in panic was left with a fractured rib and severe concussion after her drinks were spiked on separate nights.

Maria Beckwith, 42, from Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, went for drinks with a friend after they’d finished work on October 2 and attended the bar Hoochie Coochie in the City Centre when the evening took a frightening turn.   

The Mercedes Benz sales representative was having fun and ‘dancing” with her friend when she found herself in a different area of Newcastle hours later. She had no memory of how she got there.

Mia Robertson, a Saturday night out with friends, had her drink spiked and needed CPR. 

Mia Robertson (Pictured Left) needed CPR after her drink was spiked in Lincolnshire

Maria Beckwith, 42, (Right) was spiked during a night out with a work friend in Newcastle

Mia Robertson, a Grimsby teen (Pictured Left), required CPR. Maria Beckwith, 42 (Right), was left with a fractured rib’ and a’severe brain injury after their drinks had been spiked on separate nights.

Ms Beckwith (Pictured) shows her black eye, as a referral from doctors at Sunderland Royal Hospital ran tests and found that she had suffered a bump to the head, a fractured rib, bruising down her shoulder and a black eye.

Ms. Beckwith (Pictured), showing her black eye. A referral from Sunderland Royal Hospital performed tests and found that she had suffered from a bump to her head, a broken rib, bruising down the shoulder, and a blackeye.

The mother-of-two showed her bruised arm (Pictured) and said 'it was more than just a silly fall and it appears without doubt, my drink was indeed spiked'

The mother-of-2 showed her bruised arm (Pictured), and stated that it was more than a silly fall. It appears that my drink was indeed spiked.

This comes as spiking drinks in the UK is on the rise, Ms Beckwith (Pictured) shows off the painful bump on her head, which she cannot recall

This comes as spiking drinks in the UK is on the rise, Ms Beckwith (Pictured) shows off the painful bump on her head, which she cannot recall

There were nearly 200 reports of drink-spiking in the UK in September and Oct. Detectives investigate claims that seven women were injecting themselves in Brighton, while a man is taken into custody on suspicion of administering a noxious drug. 

According to the National Police Chiefs’ council, there were 198 reports of spiking across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in September and October. There have also been 24 reports of some type of injection.    

Piecing the night together, with the help of her friends, the mother- of-two said she must have got off at St James’ Metro station but blacked out and woke up ‘collapsed in a pile’ on the street with ‘fractured ribs’ and a ‘severe concussion’. 

She wrote about her terrifying experience on social media: “After spending the last few day trying to piece it together (I still don’t have any memory), it appears it was more that just a silly fall and it appears, without doubt, that my drink was indeed spiked.

“From talking to my work mate and having fun dancing to the tune, to being on the ground in a heap after collapsing 30 minutes later. To somehow end up in another part of Newcastle with money stolen from my purse.

A crowd of people gathered in Manchester to protest in a bid to urge venues to do more to protect customers from having their drink spiked as part of a nationwide movement known as Girls Night In which has seen thousands boycott bars and clubs

Manchester saw a crowd gather to protest against the fact that some venues were not doing enough to protect their customers from drink spikes as part of Girls Night In, a nationwide movement that has seen thousands of people boycott bars.

“I don’t know what happened between my collapsing and that point. However, I have suffered a severe brain injury, fractured ribs and a swollen eye socket. I also had a bruised and swollen shoulder and arm. It was not worse. 

A friend called her to describe her location and she was picked up in a taxi and taken home.

In the past two months, almost 200 cases of drink spiking were reported 

In the UK, almost 200 cases of drink-spiking incidents were reported to police in the last two months.

According to the National Police Chiefs’s Council (NPCC), there were 198 reports of drink spiking across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in September and October. There have also been 24 reports of some type of injection.

The NPCC reported that there were approximately 140 reports of drink spiking on Friday afternoon. However, this number was revised after receiving more data.

It stated that the number included both women and men, but the majority of cases were young women.

Allegations of offences were committed at licensed premises as well as private parties.

The 198 figure is based data from 40 police agencies. The NPCC indicated that it is still waiting to receive data from five additional forces, which it expects to receive over the weekend.

London: 58 reports on drink spiking

According to the NPCC, 58 of the 198 reports about drink spiking were reported to the Metropolitan Police.

Jason Harwin, Deputy Chief Constable of the NPCC, stated that these reports were very concerning.

“We are working at a pace with forces, law enforcement agency such the NCA and other partners including universities to understand and establish the scale of the offending and any links between them and bring any identified offenders in justice.”

Nottingham: 32 reports of spiked drinks and 15 of spiking involving needles in recent weeks

Three men were arrested on suspicion that they conspired to administer poison in connection to a series of reported Nottingham drink-spiking incidents.

Nottinghamshire Police reported that the men aged 18 and 19 were arrested after receiving information about them from a member. The information was received on Wednesday from a member, following a general appeal from a senior officer.

Both were placed in police custody after being arrested on suspicion of conspiring with poison with intent to injure.

The arrests are not related to any specific allegation regarding spiking by needles or contamination of drinks.

According to the force, both men have been released and are now being investigated.

Nottinghamshire Police stated that it will send more officers to ensure that people have a safe night out.  

After three reports of women being injected in two nightclubs within the city, a 20 year-old man was also arrested for drug offences and causing/administrating a poisonous substance.   

Police Scotland: Nine reports from Scotland of spikings. Eight were by injection.

 A spokesperson for Police Scotland stated that: “We are aware of posts floating on social media about spike incidents involving injections into Scotland.

“Officers are conducting inquiries, and a few reports from the Edinburgh and Dundee, Glasgow, and Aberdeen areas are being investigated.

‘These don’t appear to be connected.

“We take all reports seriously, and we encourage anyone who suspects they have been the victim of spiking in some form to contact Police via 101.

Police West Midlands: One report of a woman being ‘spiked by injection’ 

A West Midlands Police spokesperson said: ‘We’re aware of posts circulating on social media about drink spiking, particularly those involving injections.

‘At present we’ve had one report where the circumstances appear to match the description of someone being spiked by injection. However, it’s unclear exactly what’s happened and we’re in the process of trying to speak to the woman to gather more information.

‘A separate drink spiking incident involving a Birmingham-based university student is under investigation, and we’ve had a small number of reports from Birmingham city centre over the last few months.’   

Merseyside Police: Number of spiking incidents, five of which specifically relate to injection spiking

Detectives said that out of the five reports, three currently remain under investigation, including the incident onOctober 19.

Superintendent Diane Pownall stated: “Liverpool has been awarded the Purple Flag status every single year and is one the safest places in the UK. We know that people travel far and wide to take advantage of what is here, and we want that to continue.

“In April, we launched Operation Empower, our proactive policing response. Here, dedicated officers are tasked to identify potential perpetrators who exhibit signs of predatory behavior and disrupt those who pose a risk. 

“Officers are asked to be aware if there are any vulnerable individuals to ensure that all safeguarding concerns are addressed immediately.” 

South Wales Police: A’small number’ of reports

Georgia Latham reported that her drink was spiked. A spokesperson for South Wales Police stated: “We have received a few reports from people who believe this might happen and these are currently being investigated.”

“Our officers are working with licensed premises in order to alert them to spiking techniques and ask them to be extra vigilant.

“We take all reports seriously and encourage anyone who thinks they have been a victim or sprinkling in any form to get in touch with us.     

The mother-of-2 woke up in severe pain the next day and realized she needed hospital treatment.

Sunderland Royal Hospital performed tests and discovered that she had suffered a bump on her head, a fractured vertebra, and bruising down her shoulder. She also had a black eye.

Ms Beckwith said that it was too late for medics run tests to determine if she had been spiked.

The mother of two has spent the last four week recovering at home, but says she still suffers with constant headaches and dizziness.

She said, “I would hand on mine heart say there is no possible way I would have experienced a total blackout such as that and been so confused with my drink without any interference.”

“You know your body, and you know how you would behave normally.”  

Northumbria Police claimed that it was unable “to substantiate” Maria’s claims about the tone used by a male police officer shortly after she reported that the incident was condescending.

A Northumbria Police spokesperson stated that they received a report about a woman who claimed she was spiked during a night out in Newcastle, Saturday, October 2.

“We have identified a number lines of inquiry, and an investigation is ongoing at the moment.”

They stated that Operation Cloak had dedicated officers on patrol to protect vulnerable people and target those who are looking to commit offences.

“We also work with our licensees and partners to ensure that the city remains one the safest places to go out at night.

“We encourage anyone with concerns that they may have been a victim to spiking to contact us.

“As a force, I will investigate any report we receive. We are committed to working with victims and supporting them.”  

Grimsby teenager Ms Robertson needed CPR urgently after her drink was spiked on Saturday night while she was out with friends.  

After having a drink at a bar, the teenager and her friends moved on to the smoking area.

She felt uneasy and fell into unconsciousness. As her friends tried to find a pulse, they called paramedics. 

The teen was revived and spent the day at Diana Princess Of Wales hospital in Grimsby, recovering.

Mia, a Grimsby resident, stated that she went to a party Saturday night and her friends told me they were going out in Cleethorpes. This is something I didn’t expect.

“We went to a bar and had a drink before going to the smoking room. As I stood there, my legs became numb. One friend had to help me.

“They sat down and said that my eyes had gone into my back, at which point they took me out.

“Apparently, I was unconscious on the ground and they couldn’t find my pulse so they called an ambulance. I was then given CPR and rushed to Diana Princess Of Wales hospital.

“I was placed on a drip and oxygen, and woke up that morning.

“It was so shocking when I woke up. My dad and mum were not allowed in the room so I was there by myself.

A nurse asked the teen if she had ever used cocaine. She replied that she hadn’t. 

She added: ‘I laid there feeling really numb, everything ached, but at the same time I felt like my body wasn’t there.

“It was so terrifying that I could’ve lost everything without even having the chance to say good-bye to my mum.

“The whole thing was awful.”   

She was terrified by the incident and said she is now afraid to go out in Cleethorpes.

There has been a huge increase of drinks being spiked in the past month and the teenager feels something more needs to be done to prevent it from happening to others.

She said, “This topic seems to get blindsided at times. But it’s not normal and change must happen.”  

Seven women claim they were injected in just seven days on nights out at two Sussex resorts. Six revellers said they were injected in Brighton city center, with another woman claiming she was spiked in Eastbourne.

Last week, women across the UK protested and boycotted bars and clubs on October 27 in an effort to get venues to do more to prevent spiking. 

The ‘Girls Night In’ movement is underway in many cities over two weeks amid reports that young girls were being sex-sprayed at nightclubs. Pryzm, a weekly Wednesday clubnight hosted by the Pryzm on Brighton’s seafront and in Nottingham, showed its support for students. 

It came as a 22-year old student disclosed that he was robbed while on a night out at Popworld in Derby. A man, 29, was also charged by Manchester Police with rape and spiking a woman at a bar.    

Police in Sussex arrested a third man Monday in connection to the attack on the drink-spiking and needle-spiking victims. 

The arrest of the Brighton 18-year old is part of a nationwide spiking epidemic, which has prompted backlash by students and nightclubs.  

A 28-year-old man from Hove was arrested on Sunday on suspicion of administering poison with intent to injure, and a 19-year-old man from Brighton was arrested on Monday morning on suspicion of the same offence.

Today, a spokesperson for Sussex Police stated that ‘an 18-year-old male from Brighton was taken into police custody as part of an investigation into drink spiking within the city.

What are the experts saying about reports of injection spiking incidents? 

Is it possible to do this?

Yes, and there are credible reports that people have woken up with spike marks on their skin.

One medical consultant said that the possibility of it becoming a widespread phenomenon is “deeply unlikely”. 

VICE News spoke with David Caldicott who is an emergency medicine consultant and the founder of WEDINOS drug testing project WEDINOS: ‘The technical knowledge and medical knowledge required for this would make it deeply improbable. 

“It’s very difficult to stick a pen in someone without them realizing, especially if it has to stay in there for longer than 20 seconds to inject enough drug.

Could the injection not be given quickly?

Yes, but it is true.Experts say that discreetly they would need a very powerful drug.

GHB, one of the most popular ‘date rape drugs’, can be self-administered by people in small doses.

Guy Jones, a senior scientist at the Loop drug charity, said that it would be a poor candidate for injection due to the large amount of fluid required. 

It would also require a thick, painless needle. He explained that the substance involved would have to be highly detectable for several consecutive days in a toxicology screening.

Adam Winstock, Director of the Global Drug Survey, said: “There are very few easily available drugs / medicines that can be given intramuscularly in a small enough quantity that people would not notice them and the effects would take a while to show.” 

“What you see in movies is not real” People need to keep their drinks near them, not take them from strangers, and look out for their mates.

Can drugs be administered to any body part?

Yes, some parts are more efficient than others.

VICE spoke with Mr Jones to say that while drugs can be injected intravenously, there is a set of injection sites that are not safe.

“The back is one of these undesirable sites due to its low fat-muscle content and high concentrations of pain receptors.

What about drink spiking

Injection spiking is still possible but drink spiking seems to be more common.

Drink spiking incidents in the UK rose by 108 percent between 2015 and 2018, with 179 incidents occurring in 2017. 

These are the only officially recorded numbers. They are likely to be higher because it is common for people to not report it to police.

Charity Drinkaware advises: “Don’t accept drinks from people you don’t know, and if they are available, use drink stoppers which can be bought online for the top of your bottles.” 

Gamma Hydroxybutyrate and Rohypnol, also known as Roofie, are the most well-known ‘date rape’ drugs.

Some recreational drugs, such as Ecstasy, Lysergic acid diethlamide (LSD), Ketamine or other ‘party-drugs,’ can be used to spike alcoholic drinks.