Chemical detectorThe launch of a new pocket-sized DIY test, which indicates if a drink has been spiked, and is likely to be available in Ireland soon, has been welcomed by an Irish rape victims' support group.
The drink-testing kit, called the Drink Detective, was launched last week in England and the developers, Bloomsbury Innovations, said keen interest from distributors in Ireland meant that it would probably be available in Ireland in a month's time.
The kit is designed in a matchbook style and tests for the three most common groups of drug used in drug rape and other drink-spiking crimes - GHB, benzodiazepines (including Rohypnol and Valium) and ketamine.
To perform a test, the drinker uses a pipette to apply drops of the beverage to three chemically sensitive pads on the kit and observes the reaction. Each of the tests is designed to pick up the minimum concentration of a drug that can incapacitate.
The test takes a couple of minutes to complete.
Rosemary Daly from the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre said she welcomed the development of the anti-drug rape device, particularly if the product made people feel safer, more confident and added to the general safety of the individual.
Drug rape was an issue that people were becoming increasingly concerned about and the potential for more cases of sexual assault and rape in the context of rape drugs was growing, she said.
However, she said her organisation did not have statistics on this type of assault at present.
"Naturally we welcome this device," she said, but she warned, however, against perceiving the test as a precaution that future victims of sexual assault would be expected to have used, and blamed for not using.
"One of the biggest problems for victims of sexual assault and one of the biggest barriers for healing is the feeling that they have done something wrong, that they are to blame or are at fault."
Retailing at £3.95 (€6) in the UK the product is currently being sold through its own website (www.drinkdetective.com). The company hopes it will soon be available in vending machines in pubs and clubs and says it has received much interest from Ireland via the internet.
Company director Stanley Grossman said: "For the perpetrator, drug rape is currently an almost risk-free crime. Victims become partially incapacitated and often have no memory of what occurred.
"Even if they do realise what happened, all traces of the offending drug will probably have left their system before they go to the police to seek help."
By enabling drinkers to discover that their drinks have been spiked, the Drink Detective will increase the risk of discovery for the perpetrator and incidences of these crimes will be less frequent, he said.
The Drink Detective enables those who suspect their drinks may have been tampered with to do a quick on-the-spot check and either put their minds at rest or get themselves out of danger, he added.
He said that Ireland had a "great and recent" need for a product such as the Drink Detective since the introduction of the smoking ban.
Smokers must leave a pub to have a cigarette but are not allowed to bring their drink with them, forcing them to "leave their drinks unattended for someone to spike", he said.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Garda in Galway said despite reports of drinks being spiked in the city, the Garda had never found this to be the case.
In particular, he said checks for substances, including full toxicology investigations, had been made particularly when deaths had occurred and people were found in the sea or river in the city.