An urgent warning to watch out for drink spiking has been issued after a concert-goer says she tested positive for a potent illegal drug the following day.
The woman believes she was spiked with the date rape drug GHB by a stranger at the Fred Again concert at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney’s Olympic Park on Wednesday.
Now the woman’s sister has warned that young people were not taking drink spiking seriously enough and she urged local community pages to raise awareness.
‘My sister attended the Fred Again concert at Qudos Bank Arena last night and was spiked,’ she posted online on Thursday.
‘She went to get a blood test today and they found GHB in her system.’
She added: ‘Drink spiking is becoming more and more prevalent and young adults and teenagers aren’t taking it seriously. An ambulance should have been called.
‘And it should have been immediately reported to police to investigate. But nobody is properly talking about it or they are blaming the victim.
‘Drink spiking is at its highest rate in New South Wales in five years, this is serious and it needs to be talked about.’
An urgent warning for people to keep an eye on their drinks has been issued after a woman discovered an illegal drug in her system after attending a concert (stock image)
Fred Again performed three shows at Sydney’s Qudos Bank Arena this week
An attendee at the following night’s Fred Again concert told Daily Mail they saw a young girl who appeared to be unconscious being carried out of the concert.
They said the girl being removed from the main dancefloor 10 minutes before the concert had even started had struck them as ‘odd’ because the crowd was still calm.
‘Although, there was a lot of pre-loading going on outside before the concert, so it could have been that,’ the attendee said.
Daily Mail has contacted Qudos Bank Arena for comment.
Data from the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research found police recorded 220 food or drink spiking incidents between July 2022 and June 2023 – an increase of 20 per cent on the previous year and the highest rate in NSW in five years.
The state government rolled out the Think Safe to Drink Safe campaign in response to the increased food and drink spiking incidents.
People were advised not to accept drinks from other people but instead buy their own and watch it be made by the bartender.
The advice also recommended people never leave their drinks unattended and avoid batch drinks like punch that have an unknown alcohol content.
It comes just months after former Bachelor star Monique Morley revealed she was left ‘practically paralysed’ after her drink was spiked in the Caribbean.
The influencer, who was on the 2019 series of The Bachelor , revealed she was spiked in a bar during the middle of the day.
Former Bachelor star Monique Morley (pictured) revealed she was left ‘practically paralysed’ after her drink was spiked in the Caribbean
There was barely anyone in the bar except for another man who walked past her as she was looking out at the ocean. Ms Morley believes the man drugged her, despite her only looking away from her drink for five seconds.
‘My drink had only just been served and when I turned back to drink it, I started to feel really weird – mostly in my legs. I asked my girlfriend if she felt the same and she said no,’ she told Yahoo News.
‘I said, ‘Hey I think my drink has been spiked’. She asked how, as we were the only people there, but it must have been that guy.
Ms Morley said she was ‘practically paralysed’ and she was ‘violently sick’ for hours and warned other women to remain vigilant.
‘With holidays approaching, please can everyone be so so careful when out, especially when travelling and overseas,’ she wrote on Instagram.
‘Watch your drinks and always have someone you trust around you. You should always listen to your gut too and remove yourself from situations you don’t feel comfortable in.’