Dorset Police have warned members of the public about a drug called Thai Valium after two men were taken to hospital at the weekend.
The two men, aged 28 and 41, were taken to Poole General Hospital on Saturday at 6pm after they lost consciousness in the Ashley Cross area of Parkstone. It is believed they had taken a controlled drug substance a short time before falling unconscious.
The 28-year-old man regained consciousness and both were kept in overnight to be monitored. The 41-year-old man was sedated.
Detective Inspector Stewart Dipple said: “We cannot confirm at this stage if it is the controlled drug that has made the two men unwell, or if it was the quantity of tablets that were taken that caused them to fall ill.
“Our primary concern is to prevent other people potentially falling ill from taking the same drugs.
“The drug is described as a blue capsule of Thai Valium and is believed to come in blister packs of 10. It is not believed to be a prescribed drug or treatment, but rather an illegally supplied controlled drug.”
He added that it was vital that any members of the public did not take the tablets and should keep them safe from others. He advised they should be safely deposited at a police station, a hospital or medical facility, or a drug clinic.
A spokesman for UK charity DrugScope said they had spoken to Dorset Police about the incident, and believed the drug to be Valium from Thailand.
Valium is a Class C controlled substance that cannot be obtained without a prescription in the UK.
According to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, over 800,000 British tourists visit Thailand every year.
The Breaker spoke to two people who have visited Thailand recently, and asked whether they had seen Valium on sale.
Care worker Thomas Jones, 27, of Devon, said: “It’s pretty easy to get from pharmacies over the counter. I spoke to a group of tourists who told me they bought Valium in Thailand and had a ‘stay awake all night’ competition.”
Local Thai, Apinun Thongpradit, who lives in Poole but is originally from Bangkok, said to his knowledge people now needed a prescription in Thailand to buy the drug.
Many travel websites and message boards, such as Tripadvisor and Travelfish, warn users about the risks of buying Valium, also known as Diazepam, from Thailand without a prescription.
Anyone with any information regarding the supply of such tablets should contact Dorset Police on telephone number 101, quoting incident number 09:373, or phone Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
Main image by Dean812.
