No CCTV clue in Kettering spiking investigation as toxicology tests progressed

Police say they have been unable to identify any suspects from CCTV after a woman reported being spiked by an injection in a Kettering nightclub.

A 20-year-old was left needing hospital treatment and scared to go out after the incident at The Loft in Dalkeith Place on October 31.

A police investigation has been ongoing ever since, with toxicology tests also taking place.

But after CCTV footage was reviewed police say they are no closer to identifying a suspect.

A Northamptonshire Police spokesman said: "This incident is still under investigation and toxicology tests are being progressed.

"Sadly, we have been unable to identify any suspects from the reviewed CCTV footage."

The Burton Latimer victim, who did not want to be named, was on her own after losing friends and upstairs in the nightclub between 2.45am and 3am when a needle was injected into her waist.

She previously told the Northants Telegraph she felt a scratch but didn't think much of it until she started to feel some irritation.

She said her friends realised she had been spiked when they saw the mark later in the night and stayed with her as she began to feel ill. She said she had not been drinking.

The victim said: "The rest is a bit of a blur. I fell asleep on my friends and was shaking.

"I just wasn't aware of what I was doing. It was the complete opposite of my normal self."

The victim was sick and went to KGH where they took bloods, carried out an electrocardiogram (ECG) and gave her a drip and pain relief. She was told she would have to take monthly antivirals for six months because there was no way to know whether the needle used was clean.

The victim said: "I think it's disgusting that people can even think about doing that to women or anyone.

"It's sick in the head."

At the time the venue had been holding a Halloween 'Night of the Purge' night. After the incident a spokesman for The Loft said they since had increased measures to protect those on a night out.

The incident came at a time when women were reporting similar spiking reports across the country, including in nearby Northampton.

Last month the National Police Chiefs’ Council said there had been almost 300 spiking by needle reports in the UK since September, amid a wave of concern among clubbers.

Anyone with information about the incident in Kettering should call police on 101 quoting incident number 21000634479.