A recent post on social media raised awareness of the issue of people in Grand Junction having their drinks drugged in local nightclubs and bars. The message was posted on the Facebook page of Indivisible Grand Junction, but was quickly removed. During the short time it was up, the post drew 58 comments, with some people reporting that the same thing had happened to them. Some commenters defended bartenders who work at local establishments and pointed out that spiking drinks is antithetical to their jobs, since they stand to lose their job, their career, and possibly face criminal charges.  When contacted, the person who authored the post said “Me and two of my friends were drugged at Orchard Mesa Cruisers. It has been a known place where that happens. I will never go there again.” The victim reported having gotten extremely sick the next day, vomiting and having no recollection of what happened, which are typical symptoms of ingesting behavior-altering drugs.

Cruisers has diversions like pool tables, multiple big-screen TVs, a foosball table and musical entertainment that can draw patrons’ attention away from their tables, and cause them to leave their drinks unattended, which makes it easier for others to dose their drinks with drugs. Commenters on the thread also noted similar drugging incidents have happened at Quincy’s and the Mesa Theater.

The victim who made the post said she quit drinking alcohol after that happened, but added “truthfully, it doesn’t seem to matter to them whether you’re drinking alcohol or pop.” The victim added that, “We did figure out someone who has been known to roofie people.” (Having your drink spiked or drugged without your knowledge is commonly known as getting “roofied.”) The victim described a person with the first name “Robbie” who has bleached blonde hair.

Drink spiking is an un- or under-reported crime

Spiking of drinks is an under-reported crime, because victims tend to blame themselves for letting their guard down. They tend to think maybe they drank too much and no one would believe they were drugged, but the only person who should be blamed for drink spiking is the person who did it.

If you go out to local bars and clubs and stay safe, steps you can take to protect yourself include:

• Go out with a friend or in groups if possible, so you can watch out for each other.
• Don’t accept drinks from strangers.
• Order drinks in bottles or cans and watch them being opened.
• If you order a mixed drink, watch the bartender mix it and use a drink protector, which  can be purchased online. Various kinds of drink protectors are available, like silicone covers with straws that seal off your drink.  Amazon has a drink protector that looks like a hair scrunchie that you can wear on your wrist.
• If you go to the restroom, take your drink with you into the stall.
• Buy a drug testing kit specifically made for testing drinks. There are lots of them available online.  If possible, look for kits that test for more than Rohypnol, GHB and Ketamine, the drugs most typically used to spike drinks. Here is one example.
• Understand that this doesn’t happen to just women. Men are victims of drink spiking, too.
• Most drink-spiking happens at house parties. Watch out for punch bowls.

If you do get drugged while you’re out,

• Know the symptoms of being “roofied.” They include feeling more “drunk” than you should be given how much you’ve had to drink, extreme drowsiness, nausea, vomiting, confusion and disorientation, loss of muscle control, memory loss, slurred speech, sudden changes in mood and breathing problems.
• Ask for help if you feel like you’ve been drugged and consider calling 911 to report it and get help. Ingesting unknown drugs can be extremely hazardous.
• Notify the establishment where it happened so they can be on the lookout for the person doing it.
• As soon as you are able, compile all possible information about the incident, including date time, location where it happened, your symptoms, what kind of food or drink you had that you believe was drugged and any potential people you suspect might have done it, and report it to the Grand Junction Police Department by calling 970-242-6707,  or make an online report of it to GJPD as an incident of tampering at this link.  This way the report will get into the system and police can start tracking the details of these crimes.
• While under the influence of the drug, if you can, have the presence of mind to take a sample of your own urine in a clean container and refrigerate or freeze it so it can be used as evidence.