Katharina Buczek
The county of Arlington, Virginia, has increasingly received reports of possible drink spiking. Now, the Arlington County Police Department (ACPD) has published tips to protect yourself.
The term “drink spiking” refers to someone placing drugs or alcohol into another person’s drink without them knowing.
Not only is this act illegal, but combining unknown substances can be lethal for victims.
In October alone, the ACPD received six reports of drink spiking. All of the victims were female and reported losing consciousness.
They also suffered from memory loss after their nights out in Clarendon and Crystal City. The ACPD is actively investigating these incidents, which occurred between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. So far, no link between the six cases has been found.
Arlington County Police Spokesperson Ashley Savage said, “Unfortunately these are things that we do see in our community.”
“However, we did have a lot of restrictions on our nightlife during the pandemic. So, now as we get back into a more normal routine of people interacting with each other, it’s really important that our community is aware and takes the steps to keep themselves safe.”
The ACPD has established the Arlington Restaurant Initiative (ARI) “to raise the standards of restaurants that serve alcohol, streamline processes within the County Government and maintain Arlington County as a safe destination for nightlife and entertainment.”
The ARI offers training for various situations, including drink spiking.
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