WOMAN SAYS DRUGGING DRINKS IS RAMPANT

A well respected, Kelowna real estate agent spent last week reeling
from the effects of a cocktail spiked with methamphetamine as she
danced in a local nightclub.

The mother of three agreed to an interview with the Capital News
about the incident, but asked not to be identified by name because of
the stigma associated with being drugged in a night club.

"It's amazing. I've talked to so many people about this and everybody
knows someone (whose had something slipped in their drink)," she said.

"I think that more people should know that this is happening out
there I came to that decision when I started doing my own networking
and found out just how rampant this is."

On Saturday, Nov. 4, the realtor escorted her 22-year-old exchange
student on a night of dancing at the Level night club after taking in
a hockey game.

She does not remember anyone slipping anything into her drink and the
beverage was within her sights while she danced.

Still, when she left the bar to get a piece of pizza, she passed out
and was taken to Kelowna General Hospital by ambulance.

Doctors treating her in the emergency department informed her the
hospital found methamphetamine in her blood stream.

She was given a sedative to help sleep off the effects, she said.

Kelowna RCMP are now investigating and say the use of methamphetamine
to drug someone; rather than GHB (gamma hydroxybutyrate) or roofies
(rohypnol)---two drugs commonly referred to as date rape drugs; marks
a first for local investigators.

"Methamphetamine is not water soluble, but it could be coming in a
powder form that somebody could have put in there," said RCMP
spokeswoman Const. Annie Linteau.

"We hear of GHB all the time, but we've never heard of meth being put
in a drink."

The incident was only reported to police on Friday, as the victim
felt her complaint would likely be treated as a nuisance call given
the number of people she's discovered who share similar experiences
with being drugged.

"Several people told me, 'Oh, they won't do anything about it
anyway,'" she said, when asked why she didn't immediately call police.

RCMP do not have statistics on the number of complaints they receive
about people being drugged via drinks. Linteau said it would be hard
to track through their current filing system.

KGH emergency physicians could not be reached for comment before
deadline, however, the victim says emergency room staff told her this
is an all too common occurrence.

RCMP are cautioning people not to leave drinks unattended and to seek
medical attention if anything untoward occurs while having a drink.

"Always, always keep contact with your drink. Never leave it
unattended and don't trust anybody to keep it for you," said Linteau.

Meanwhile, the victim says a public awareness campaign is needed to
bring more awareness to the issue.

In the week since she was targeted, she said there have been some who
have criticized her for leaving her drink unattended.

"It's not something people really want to talk about because no one
knows what's happened to them while they were drugged there's the
shame that goes along with it," she said.

"I'm not the perpetrator. But I think somehow, socially, the victim
can be blamed.

"Which is very similar to how rape was treated 20 years ago."