Men also are hidden victims of spiking issue

Spiking is an issue everywhere and not everyone reports it, especially men, reports Liv Slomka.

Based on an anonymous survey, three out of 10 men, who participated, don't report being spiked because of a stigma around abuse and violence.

Spiking has been an increasing problem in the past few years. Thirty per cent of men who participated in my survey have been spiked and didn't report it for various reasons; the main reason being embarrassment and feeling as if their report wouldn't be taken as seriously as a woman's report that she was spiked.

Only three participants out of 20 knew how to fully identify a spiked drink.

Nine out of 20 didn't know how to identify a spiked drink at all and eight knew that ice should float and that the drink might have residue of the drug in the bottom of the cup/ bottle containing their drink.

One of the anonymous participants said: “I wouldn't report it, because men in this modern world are not subjected to the same help as females.

“Most of the cases where females have done inappropriate and dangerous actions towards men, they are not investigated or treated the same as it would have been if the roles were reversed and subsequently the punishments for the same crimes/actions are not as harsh for females compared to males.”

Many of the men who took part in the survey believed that there was no point in reporting it as the person wouldn't be found and it’s a well-known fact that if you go for a night out there’s a large possibility of getting spiked, so no-one would act on it.

Detective Superintendent Chris Baker, from Leicestershire Police, said: “Spiking is a horrific crime which can happen to anyone and can have a significant impact on the victim involved.

“Not all incidents of spiking are reported to us. This may be because a victim feels too scared or embarrassed to report it or because they feel no action will be taken.

“Please know that we are here to help you. We will listen to you, we will take you seriously and we will investigate and help provide support to you.”

A few other participants who haven't been spiked said that they would probably report it to get more attention about spiking in popular places, to get more security measures installed to keep their female friends safer on nights out.

The fact that men don’t feel comfortable reporting these cases affects important spiking statistics as it is happening more than we know.

You can report incidents online at www.leics.police.uk or by calling 101. Always call 999 in an emergency.

Crime prevention regarding spiking can be found on the force website at Spiked drinks and date-rape drugs | Crime prevention | Leicestershire Police (leics.police.uk)