Raising awareness about drink spiking and drug facilitated sexual assault

Drug-Facilitated Sexual Assault (DFSA) is a sexual act in which the victim is unable to give or retract consent due to intoxication with alcohol and/or drugs. A general scenario includes the victim being drugged and severely incapacitated, usually in a situation that he/she perceives as non-threatening. The victim then loses consciousness within a short period of time after drinking a spiked beverage or food. When the victim regains consciousness sometimes later, the victim finds himself/herself in unfamiliar surroundings, partially or fully undressed, often with inexplicable injuries and no memory of what had happened. Due to feeling of guilt, shame and fear of retaliation, the reporting rate of such cases is very low. Building on years of research on forensic investigation of DFSA, we highlight a number of issues, including motives behind drink spiking, common myths and facts, examples of recent cases, types of drugs involved, analysis of different sample types and the factors for underreporting of the cases. Findings will be shared from a recent survey based research on knowledge, perception and experience about DFSA and provide some useful takeaway tips on how to stay safe from drink spiking