A South West University student said her arm was paralyzed for hours after she was the target of a suspicious needlestick incident. The freshman at the University of Exeter says the incident left her struggling mentally, although she considers herself “lucky” to have escaped all the typical spike effects.
The student, who wishes to remain anonymous, reported the incident on the night of February 9 until the early hours of February 10, while at the Timepiece nightclub. As Devon Live reports, the student says, “I didn’t realize anything happened that night, I had no symptoms, nothing. I had two friends with me all night. , we stayed together.
“The next morning I woke up and my whole lower arm felt paralyzed. It was so heavy and sore that I couldn’t move it. I looked down and could see a really red wound – a mark where I had been injected – and then all around was bruised.
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“You hear about these things, but you never think they’ll happen to you. It’s disgusting that people walk around and do this. I’m a freshman just having fun at a party with friends.
“I struggled mentally for a while because of the consequences, but I won’t let this person ruin my club experience. You can’t let him affect you any more than he already has and I won’t let this incident dictate to me.”
She contacted the police immediately after the incident. A Devon and Cornwall Police spokesperson confirmed officers were investigating the incident.
The student said the evening before the incident had been normal. The town center clubs are very lively as it is traditionally Exeter’s student sports night.
She added: “I had quite a few drinks during the evening. I think the incident happened later in the evening when we were dancing upstairs in Timepiece, everyone was crushed. “
The unnamed student says she only realized she had been the victim of a suspected needle stick the next morning. “I left the club around 2am and went back to bed feeling perfectly fine, I had no reason to suspect anything bad had happened.
“The next morning I saw the bruise which was blue and purple, it was really nasty. I went straight to A&E where they cleaned it up and told me what to do. I filed a police report, did a drug test and it came back negative.”
The victim was allegedly doped while on a night out at a college club (Image: Devon Live)
The victim believes that it was a planned attack, because the participants of the discotheque had to buy a ticket in advance. She said: “It’s scary because you have to buy tickets in advance to get into Timepiece so they must have planned it.
“How can someone get into the nightclub with a real needle? There’s no bag checks at Timepiece, there’s security everywhere but no bag checks.”
The student says that despite the horrific incident, it was the next steps that upset her. She said: “I’ve been back to Timepiece since the incident, I don’t have any trauma from being in a club. It’s just the aftermath that traumatized me, having to talk to the police, sitting alone in A&E and just like this.
“I have no idea who did this to me and I will never know who it was. The mark where the needle went in is really big so I think it was an attempted injection.
“I was actually very lucky, I’m so thankful I didn’t have any of the effects. I’m so thankful I didn’t pass out in a hedge or something, it’s just terrifying .I won’t let that disgusting person dictate me.”
Speaking to Devon Live, a spokesperson for Devon and Cornwall Police said: “Police are currently investigating an incident of assault which allegedly took place at a nightclub in Little Castle Street in Exeter.
“A woman reported that she suffered a needle stick injury to her arm from an unknown person which occurred late Wednesday February 9th until the early morning hours of Thursday February 10th.
“Anyone with information is asked to contact police quoting CR/012898/22.”
Devon Live approached Timepiece for comment.
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Source: www.somersetlive.co.uk
This notice was published: 2022-04-01 23:00:00
