A Bloody Bad Night!

[khunopie]

I get a call from my buddy to join him at a small "Oz" pub on Soi 4. There are plenty of drinks and a couple of cute girls there..... a really mellow atmosphere. One of the girls suggests my friend and I go with her and her friend for some karaoke. Sounds grand!

I and a cute girl race off in a taxi, suspecting my friend will be shortly behind, and we arrive at some karaoke cottages off in some unknown part of Bangkok. So far just a cute girl and me. Drinks and songs insue.

Next I realize I am awake, it's noon, and I'm in bed at Bumrungrad, feeling slightly out of it. A doctor arrives and tells me I was in picked up, a walking zombie on Soi 4...

I get out of bed and feel the effects being drugged... a bit wobbly and buzzed... but want to leave.

The Bill: Bumrungrad 33,000 baht (which included a catscan!) and a laundry list of fees... my only lasting injury was a small bump on the head

8000 baht removed from my wallet, cel ph, digtal camera, watch.... about 70,000 worth of cash and prizes up in smoke....

I thought it would never happen to me. The moral: careful when singing with charming strangers

[britmaveric]

Well you have your life, so it sure could have been heaps worse.

[Patex]

... but still alive!

On the second thought... did the cute girl wear a nurseuniform from the Bumrungrad hospital??

Edited May 2, 2006 by Patex

[sriracha john]

I get a call from my buddy to join him at a small "Oz" pub on Soi 4.

The Bill: Bumrungrad 33,000 baht (which included a catscan!) and a laundry list of fees... my only lasting injury was a small bump on the head

First, good to hear you came out of the ordeal with your life, albeit a lighter wallet.

Secondly, interesting that the hospital would do such an extensive work-up on an unconscious person. What would their reaction be if one simply said, "I'm not willing to pay it"... or even, "I don't have that much money to pay it."

p.s. care to name this "Oz" pub that employs such nefarious employees??

[Phil B]

What happened to your buddy from the oz bar?

[Mighty Mouse]

You didn't tell us the important bit...............

.........can the girl you were with sing in tune???

[taxexile]

Secondly, interesting that the hospital would do such an extensive work-up on an unconscious person.

a cat scan would seem like a sensible diagnostic procedure to undertake on an semi - conscious patient with a head injury , would show up any bleeding inside the skull.

[Tippaporn]

Since all the important questions have already been asked, sorry to hear about it. I'd be curious to know what these knock-out drugs are and where people get them.

[taxexile]

Rohypnol

Rohypnol

is the trade name for the drug flunitrazepam, a benzodiazepine (central nervous system depressant) like Valium, yet 10 times more potent. Outside the United States, Rohypnol is legally manufactured by Hoffman-LaRoche, Inc., and is available by prescription for the short-term treatment of severe sleep disorders. It is widely available in Europe, Mexico, and Colombia, but is neither manufactured nor approved for sale in the United States.

Illicit use of Rohypnol began in the 1970s in Europe and appeared in the United States in the early 1990s. Much of the concern surrounding Rohypnol is its abuse as a "date rape" drug. Rohypnol is a tasteless and odorless drug and, until recent manufacturer efforts, dissolved clear in liquid, which masked its presence. Rohypnol comes in pill form and is usually sold in the manufacturer’s bubble packaging, which can mislead users in the United States into believing the drug is safe and legal. Since February 1999, reformulated Rohypnol tablets, which turn blue in a drink to increase visibility, have been approved and marketed in 20 countries. The old noncolored tablets are still available, however. In response to the reformulated blue tablets, people who intend to commit a sexual assault facilitated by Rohypnol are now serving blue tropical drinks and punches in which the blue dye can be disguised.

Effects

Rohypnol can be ingested orally, snorted, or injected. It is often combined with alcohol or used as a remedy for the depression that follows a stimulant high. The effects of Rohypnol begin within 15 to 20 minutes of administration and, depending on the amount ingested, may persist for more than 12 hours. The drug’s metabolic properties are detectable in urine for up to 72 hours after ingestion.

Under Rohypnol, individuals may experience a slowing of psychomotor performance, muscle relaxation, decreased blood pressure, sleepiness, and/or amnesia. Some of the adverse side effects associated with the drug’s use are drowsiness, headaches, memory impairment, dizziness, nightmares, confusion, and tremors. Although classified as a depressant, Rohypnol can induce aggression and/or excitability.

Prevalence Estimates

Rohypnol is popular with youth because of its low cost, which is usually less than $5 per tablet. It has been used throughout the United States by high school and college students, street gang members, rave and nightclub attendees, drug addicts, and alcohol abusers. Rohypnol is used in combination with alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, heroin, ecstasy, and LSD. The predominant user age group is 13- to 30-years-old and users tend to be male.

Availability, Trafficking, and Seizures

Because Rohypnol is not manufactured nor approved for medical use in the United States, distributors must obtain their supply from other countries. Colombian traffickers ship Rohypnol to the United States via mail services and/or couriers using commercial airlines. Distributors also travel to Mexico to obtain supplies of the drug and smuggle it into the United States.

In the late 1980s, Rohypnol abuse and distribution were occasionally reported in Florida and in the border areas of Arizona, California, and Texas. Beginning around 1993, the abuse and distribution of Rohypnol began to spread, with the vast majority of Rohypnol-related law enforcement cases occurring between January 1993 and December 1996. The two largest Rohypnol seizures occurred in February 1995. At that time, more than 52,000 tablets were seized in Louisiana and 57,000 tablets were seized in Texas. By June 1996, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) had documented more than 2,700 Federal, State, and local law enforcement encounters with Rohypnol.

On March 5, 1996, the U.S. Customs Service began seizing Rohypnol at United States borders on advice from DEA and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. By December 1997, Customs Service efforts had substantially reduced the availability of the drug.

In May 2000, DEA, along with the U.S. Border Patrol, seized 900 Rohypnol tablets in Texas. In July 2000, multiagency investigations led to the closure of a pharmacy in Mexico that used the mail to distribute Rohypnol to California.

According to DEA’s System to Retrieve Information from Drug Evidence (STRIDE) data, Rohypnol seizures were at their highest in 1995, with 164,534 dosage units, and have since decreased to 4,967 units in 2000.

Regional Observations

According to Pulse Check: Trends in Drug Abuse, Rohypnol is now the least available club drug in the United States. Nevertheless, Los Angeles and El Paso report that the drug is widely available. The remaining Pulse Check sites report it as somewhat, not very, or not at all available.

In El Paso, speedball (a combination of heroin and cocaine) users often use Rohypnol to "soften the fall when coming down." El Paso treatment centers also report clients using "roche," which is presumed to be Rohypnol smuggled in from Mexico.

According to the Community Epidemiology Work Group (CEWG), reports of Rohypnol use have been declining since recent legislation and its use is very low or nonexistent in the majority of CEWG areas. Cities that are exceptions to this decline in use include Atlanta and New Orleans. Poison control calls involving Rohypnol in combination with other drugs have increased in Atlanta where Rohypnol sells for $5 to $10 per pill. In New Orleans, Rohypnol is common in nightclubs and private rave parties.

Texas has experienced increases in poison control calls and treatment admissions for Rohypnol, especially among Hispanic youth close to the Mexican border. In the first quarter of 2000, DEA reported increases in Rohypnol seizures in Laredo, Beaumont, and Austin.

Drug-Facilitated Rape

Drug-facilitated rape can be defined as sexual assault made easier by the offender’s use of an "anesthesia" type drug that can render the victim physically incapacitated or helpless and unable to give consent to sexual activity. Whether the victim is unwittingly administered the drug or willingly ingests it for recreational use is irrelevant. The person is victimized because of an inability to consciously consent to sexual acts.

Rohypnol is one of the drugs most commonly implicated in drug-facilitated rape. It can mentally and physically paralyze an individual. Effects of the drug are of particular concern in combination with alcohol and can lead to anterograde amnesia, where events that occurred during the time the drug was in effect are forgotten.

During 2000, some 261,000 rapes/sexual assaults occurred, but it is unknown how many were drug facilitated. Many factors contribute to this lack of data, including the short period of time that the drug can be detected in the victim’s system. Also, victims may not seek help until days after the assault, partly because the drug impairs their memory and partly because of their inability to recognize signs of sexual assault. As with any sexual assault, survivors need help regaining a sense of control and security. Many victims rely on a support system to help them deal with the flood of emotions in the aftermath of the assault.

Scheduling and Legislation

As a result of the 1971 United Nations Convention on Psychotropic Substances, the United States placed Rohypnol under Schedule IV of the Controlled Substances Act in 1984. Rohypnol is not approved for manufacture or sale within the United States.

Controlled Substances Act—Formal Scheduling

Schedule I—The drug has a high potential for abuse, is not currently accepted for medical use in treatment in the United States, and lacks accepted safety for use under medical supervision.

Schedule II—The drug has a high potential for abuse, is currently accepted for medical use in treatment in the United States, and may lead to severe psychological or physical dependence.

Schedule III—The drug has less potential for abuse than drugs in Schedule I and II categories, is currently accepted for medical use in treatment in the United States, and may lead to moderate or low physical dependence or high psychological dependence.

Schedule IV—The drug has low potential for abuse relative to other drugs, is currently accepted for medical use in treatment in the United States, and may lead to limited physical dependence or psychological dependence relative to drugs in Schedule III.

Schedule V—The drug has a low potential for abuse relative to drugs in Schedule IV, is currently accepted for medical use in treatment in the United States, and may lead to limited physical or psychological dependence relative to drugs in Schedule IV.

By March 1995, the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs had transferred Rohypnol from a Schedule IV to a Schedule III drug. DEA is reviewing the possibility of reclassifying Rohypnol as a Schedule I drug. At the State level, Rohypnol already has been reclassified as a Schedule I substance in Florida, Idaho, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania.

In response to Rohypnol abuse and use of the drug to facilitate sexual assaults, the U.S. Congress passed the Drug Induced Rape Prevention and Punishment Act, effective October 13, 1996. The law provides for harsher penalties regarding the distribution of a controlled substance to an individual without the individual’s consent and with the intent to commit a crime of violence, including rape. The law imposes a penalty of up to 20 years in prison and a fine for the importation and distribution of 1 gram or more of Rohypnol. Simple possession is punishable by 3 years in prison and a fine.

In 1997, penalties for possession, trafficking, and distribution of Rohypnol were further increased by the U.S. Sentencing Commission’s Federal Sentencing Guidelines to those of a Schedule I substance because of growing abuse of the drug.

Street Terms

Street Terms for Rohypnol

Circles

Forget me drug

Forget me pill

Getting roached

La Rocha

Lunch money drug

Mexican valium

Pingus

R-2

Reynolds

Rib

Roach-2

Roapies

Robutal Roofies

Rope

Rophies

Row-shay

Ruffles

Wolfies

[LaoPo]

Scary stuff/story.

Seems to happen more often; read on another forum that a Farang couple in BKK were offered some 'nuts/peanuts' (after refusing a drink); next thing they were found on a high Sukumvhit soi outside of a small hotel not knowing what happened, far away from their original lower Suk. bar

Everything taken from them...

Scary

LaoPo

[taxexile]

http://www.drinkdetective.com/

an interesting site about these drugs and how to protect yourself from them.

Date rape test kit for sale online

(Filed: 08/04/2004)

A test kit which identifies the presence of the most common "date rape" drugs in drinks was launched yesterday.

The Drink Detective is the first product capable of showing whether a drink has been spiked with one of the drugs currently being used in attacks.

The Drink Detective is effective within 30 seconds [Larger image]

Police and victim support groups hope the kit will deter perpetrators and help stem the rise of drug rape and other crimes which involve tampering with drinks.

Last year, almost 1,000 people reported being raped or sexually assaulted after having their drinks tampered with, although the real number is thought to be much higher.

The Drink Detective kit went on sale on the internet yesterday and will be available in shops and vending machines in pubs and clubs across Britain later this month.

The pack comes with a pipette which is used to place drops of suspect drinks on to strips of chemicals.

These react and change colour within 30 seconds if GBH, ketamine and benzodiazepines including rohypnol and valium are present.

Graham Rhodes, chief executive of the Roofie Foundation, a drink spiking support group, said the kit's launch was a step forward in combating the growing problem of date rape drugs.

He said: "Victims have been gang-raped, videoed having sex and made to pose for pornography without realising it. These crimes leave deep mental scars.

"The number of attacks has been growing steadily and now stands at an all-time high. The development of this product is not going to eliminate the problem, but it does send out the signal that people who suspect their drinks have been spiked can now do something about it."

Drink-spiking sex crimes have increased almost 10-fold over the last decade in Britain - from 144 reported incidents in 1993 to 535 in 1998 and 998 last year.

Some 70 per cent of attacks are believed to be carried out by people known to the victim, and about 13 per cent of victims are male.

© Copyright of Telegraph Group Limited 2006.

Edited May 3, 2006 by taxexile

[greenwanderer108]

I'm not at such a high risk of being drugged

...for money...well, the purpotrators would end up being disapointed

...for sex ...perhaps, I just hope the broads would be considerate to throw on a condom

[taxexile]

for sex ...perhaps, I just hope the broads would be considerate to throw on a condom

as for sex , ............. well i doubt if there would be any of that with a slobbering comatose male in limp mode.

these drugs are usually given by men to women when the goal is rape.

when the women give them to men , robbery is the only goal.

women dont need to drug men to get laid.

[Tippaporn]

Scary stuff/story.

Seems to happen more often; read on another forum that a Farang couple in BKK were offered some 'nuts/peanuts' (after refusing a drink); next thing they were found on a high Sukumvhit soi outside of a small hotel not knowing what happened, far away from their original lower Suk. bar

Everything taken from them...

Scary

LaoPo

If you think about it, though, since it seems the thieves have no interest in the victims and just their valuables, it might be a better alternative to western style robbery at gunpoint. If I had to choose I'd rather be drugged up and dumped off somewhere than to be at the wrong end of an itchy trigger finger. Just looking at the positive side.

To add some humour, it might be due to the Thais non-violent Buddhist upbringings?

BTW, tax, thanks for the info and link.

Edited May 3, 2006 by Tippaporn

[chanchao]

Would try to find out a little more. Chances are it's not your cute-girl friend who was responsible, but rather something that happened after that. After a lot of alcohol first you then often don't remember what happens next..

Still, at the very least, cute-girl was irresponsible in leaving you in a state where worse things proceeded to happen. (Assuming you didn't get drunk & obnoxious first)

Still, all those things would be good to find out when going back to that place in Soi 4.

[khunopie]

I believe it was Roo Bar on Soi 4....

I too had sticker shock at Bumrungrad.... all I needed was a place to sleep... Conrad's Presidential Suite would have been much nicer and possibly cheaper...

[ProfessorFart]

Get yourself back to the Aussie bar and start from there. Chances are however, that this little cutie has suddenly quit her job and headed off to Isaan to tend to the sick buffalo.

[meemiathai]

You didn't tell us the important bit...............

.........can the girl you were with sing in tune???

Even more important so was... if she was wearing a skirt or pants...

[Totster]

Get yourself back to the Aussie bar and start from there. Chances are however, that this little cutie has suddenly quit her job and headed off to Isaan to tend to the sick buffalo.

And remember... once you are back in the Aussie bar, you are there to find out info about your thief.. not to find another cutie to fall instantly in love with again !

totster

[Neeranam]

Why did they take you or who took you to the most expensive hospital in the country?

Be careful there they are not honest, and throw on lots of extras that are not neccessary.

They got me, when my daughter was born for an extra 35,000 baht.

[Neeranam]

In fact, I would refuse to pay if I woke up in Bamrungrad, and faced with a brain scan for a bump on the head - did you pay?

[khunopie]

I thought 500 baht for a manicure was a bit much... especially as I didn't want one.

And if anyone sees a slim black haired Thai girl with small breasts wearing a large Nautica watch.....

[chanchao]

In fact, I would refuse to pay if I woke up in Bamrungrad, and faced with a brain scan for a bump on the head - did you pay?

Well, refuse is a big word, but I would most certainly investigate and negotiate, yes. It's not unlike checking a restaurant bill, or settling mini-bar disputes at hotels.

I know this doesn't apply in this case as the OP was not conscious, but typically BEFORE getting any kind of hospital treatment (incl. childbirth) you discuss, review and negotiate options and prices. Often in cases where a very insignificant choice has to be made for one option or another, hospitals tend to go for the most expensive option. You have to slow them down somewhat in this.

As for 'being taken to the most expenisve hospital': it's kind of an obvious choice when found in need of urgent medical attention in soi 4, as Bumrungrad is in soi 3... I think I would prefer that in an emergency over being trucked all the way across town in a body-bag koo-phai 'Rescue' pick-up to some shoddy hospital...

Cheers,

Chanchao

[LindsayBKK]

And?

Expecting sympathy?

This is what Thailand is known for. Do some guys actually think that these girls want to show you the town cause they think your cute? yer right.

Sorry but we hear these stories all the time.

[too true]

And?

Expecting sympathy?

This is what Thailand is known for. Do some guys actually think that these girls want to show you the town cause they think your cute? yer right.

Sorry but we hear these stories all the time.

Ouch. No need to be so nasty about it. It shakes you up a bit when it actually happens to you, as opposed to when it happens to some stranger on a discussion board and you just read about it because nothing else is happening at the time.

I had that frightening drug experience here in Chiang Mai. Fortunately I was able to tell that I wasn't just drunk and a friend took me home. But the next day I took myself to the hospital when my heart rate went down to about 42 beats/minute. Strange thing is, I know who it was, and he knows I know it was him, but there's no way he'd admit it and I've got no proof, so that's where it ends.

Nothing to be done except be very very careful, I think. I've been told that if I leave a drink on the table and go off to the bathroom for a minute, not to drink the drink when I come back. Finish it first, or get a new one.

Two Thai friends of mine (guys) had the same experience on a beach in the south, and they hadn't been sitting drinking with anyone. But their beers came to them opened and they didn't see the waiter/waitress open them. They woke up the next morning with no id, no money, no shoes.

There needs to be a little tester stick or something you can put in your drink before you drink it that will tell you if there's drugs in it or not. Like a pregnancy test - blue stripe means drugs, no stripe means no drugs.

[taxexile]

Neeranam Posted Today, 2006-05-03 11:36:15

They got me, when my daughter was born for an extra 35,000 baht.

and you only went in to have your haemmorrhoids cauterised

[Greer]

Regarding the drug testing kit - great idea - but how many people are going to carry it around AND remember to use it before sipping from their next drink? It's certainly a start though.

As for the hospital bill - I am VERY surprised at this - virtually all hospitals I have had anything to do with want to verify that you can pay before doing anything - if the OP had his money and credit cards stolen, I think the hospital was taking a very big risk in working on him. Again, surprised, but in a pleasant way for once - even though the bill was high...

Edited May 3, 2006 by Greer

[britmaveric]

If the cutie was an employee of the bar, there should be recourse for you. I dare say the bar doesnt need a bad reputation for this sort of thing, will cost them more dosh in the long run.

[jackr]

And?

Expecting sympathy?

This is what Thailand is known for. Do some guys actually think that these girls want to show you the town cause they think your cute? yer right.

Sorry but we hear these stories all the time.

Two Thai friends of mine (guys) had the same experience on a beach in the south, and they hadn't been sitting drinking with anyone. But their beers came to them opened and they didn't see the waiter/waitress open them. They woke up the next morning with no id, no money, no shoes.

Thing is, beer bottles can be opened, drugged, have the tops tapped back on them and stashed away for the unfortunates, so even if they're opened in front of you that's no sure sign they're good. The only sure way is to drink from a can and keep him in your pocket when you're playing pool. How many bars serve cans in Muang Thai though

[barryofthailand]

Very hard to believe, as hospitals in Thailand will mot treat you without the ability to pay.

Barry