Drink and needle spiking: Police issue warning to Leeds revellers ahead of New Year's Eve celebrations

The advice has been issued as police in West Yorkshire have provided figures of spiking reports from the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) in the 12 months ending September 2022, which show that there was nearly 400 cases reported across the county.

Nearly 5,000 cases of needle and drink spiking incidents were reported across England and Wales as forces across stepped up their focus on tackling the issue.

Spiking is when someone puts alcohol or drugs into another person’s drink or body without their consent or knowledge, which is illegal even if no other offence is committed. People can also be the victims of ‘needle spiking’, which is injecting someone with drugs without their consent.

The figures provided by West Yorkshire Police show that there was 190 cases of needle spiking reported between September 2021 and August 2022 and 187 cases of drink spiking between May and August this year. There was also 16 cases of different spiking reported such as through cigarettes or food.

Police across the country increased their focus on spiking following a rapid rise of reports in Autumn 2021.

Assistant Chief Constable Damien Miller of West Yorkshire Police, said: “The issue of drinks spiking has been one West Yorkshire Police has been alive to, recording and investigating for several years now. Offending can take place against women and men in a wide variety of scenarios including domestic situations in which an attempt is made by a person to harm another known to them, and in the night-time economy. 

“This kind of offending in the night-time economy has of course come to prominence as part of the wider debate around violence against women. The issue of women’s safety is rightly a key national and local issue and we do understand the genuine safety concerns that women have. All offences of spiking that have been reported are recorded as a crime in line with the force’s crime recording policy and then investigated.”

ACC Miller added that the force has been working with partner agencies and licensees to better understand offending and to advise users of the night-time economy about the issue.

Police have urged anyone who may have been a victim of spiking to call 999 or 101 to report it to the police. A spokesperson said: “We need to know about every possible spiking so we can investigate, even if no other crime has taken place. If you are out in a bar or club, you can report to a member of staff, who will be able to help and support you.

“If you are injured or have symptoms you are worried about after being spiked, call NHS 111. If you think you’ve been sexually assaulted, you can go to your nearest sexual assault referral centre (SARC) for specialist care and support. At a SARC you can receive a medical or forensic examination (whether or not you decide to report to the police). If you’ve been affected by crime and you need confidential support or information, you can also call Victim Support on 08 08 16 89 111.”