Thread: Reports surface that tourists were drugged

Reports surface that tourists were drugged

Nearly a dozen people have come forward since woman's death in January


Abbey Connor: pulled brain dead from pool.

Friday, July 21, 2017

Multiple reports of tourists quickly losing consciousness and even dying after ingesting alcoholic drinks at resorts in Cancún and the Riviera Maya in Quintana Roo have raised a serious question:

Are some resorts drugging their guests or serving them tainted alcohol?

The story of 20-year-old Abbey Conner of Wisconsin, who died in January after drinking at a swim-up bar just hours into a vacation in Playa del Carmen, has earned international media coverage this week after numerous, similar reports from others have surfaced.

Shortly after arriving at the resort run by the Spanish company Iberostar, Abbey and her 22-year-old brother Austin went to the pool.

Austin Connor says that he and his sister had four or five shots of tequila together followed by another shot with another group of people. Soon after, both siblings lost consciousness.

When Abbey was pulled from the pool she was already brain dead and she passed away a few days later when she was taken off life support in Florida.

Apart from the brain injury she was also found to have a broken collarbone while her brother suffered a severe concussion. It is unclear what caused their injuries.

It is not the first time that tourists staying at resorts in the state have lost consciousness or sustained injuries so quickly after ingesting alcohol.

Nearly a dozen tourists or their family members have come forward to relate similar experiences and in some cases, victims say they blacked out after just one or two drinks.

Robbery, sexual assault and extortion have all been reported and considered as possible motives although in other cases there appears to be no motive.

One Wisconsin woman told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that she was sexually assaulted while both she and her husband were unconscious after having three drinks each on the beach while staying at an Iberostar property in Cancún.

An Iowa woman quickly lost consciousness at a swim-up bar at the same property after drinking one shot of tequila followed by a cocktail that the bartender described as “something special.”

Her next recollection was waking up in hospital vomiting and dehydrated.

Two young men from the United States drowned in the same pool at the Grand Oasis resort in Cancún in separate incidents — one almost 10 years ago, the other in 2013 — and the mother of one man, Maureen Webster, says hotel staff did nothing to help her son.

“Every time, every single time, something bad happens, they (Mexican resorts and authorities) blame the victim,” Webster said. “They were drunk, they were drunk . . . .”

All of the victims who have come forward say they are certain that they were victims of something other than heavy drinking.

An attorney hired by Connor’s family to investigate her case noted in a report that excessive drinking was the norm at the resort where Abbey Connor died but also alluded to tainted alcohol.

“They serve alcoholic drinks with alcohol of bad quality and in great amounts, mixing different types of drinks.”

It is the lawyer’s first finding that is most alarming, raising the possibility that all-inclusive resorts are using cheap, bootleg liquor in order to cut costs.

A 2015 report by the Federal Tax Administration (SAT) concluded that 43% of all alcohol consumed in Mexico is illegal and unregulated and as a consequence is potentially dangerous.

Authorities have seized more than 1.4 million gallons of adulterated alcohol since 2010, reports show, some from hotels.

There are also suspicions that local hospitals and other healthcare providers are overcharging foreign patients and maybe even colluding with resorts.

Abbey Conner’s family paid around US $17,000 for her initial treatment at a clinic near Playa del Carmen and soon after paid an amount in the tens of thousands of dollars to a hospital in Cancún where both Abbey and her brother were transferred.

Other victims reported being encouraged to go to hospital to seek treatment or being pressured for large — and in some cases up-front — cash payments.

In response to the claims, a spokeswoman from Iberostar stated that it takes the health and safety of all its guests very seriously and that the company only purchases sealed bottles of alcohol to be served at its resorts.

http://mexiconewsdaily.com/news/repo...-were-drugged/

I need this saved for a project I'm working on.

W

Sticky.

State Department warns of tainted alcohol in Mexico after reports of blackouts

July 27, 2017 at 1:29 PM


Tourists relax on the beach in Cancun, Mexico in a file photo.

Washington -- The State Department is warning U.S. travelers about potentially tainted or bootleg alcohol in Mexico after numerous stories of blackouts and illnesses among guests at some resorts.

The department updated its online safety and security guidance for Mexico this week and urged travelers to avoid excessive alcohol, according to CNN.

"There have been allegations that consumption of tainted or substandard alcohol has resulted in illness or blacking out," the guidance said, according to CNN. "If you choose to drink alcohol, it is important to do so in moderation and to stop and seek medical attention if you begin to feel ill."

The updated guidance follows a major story this week from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel detailing numerous instances of sickness, blackouts and injuries at some five-star, all-inclusive resorts in the Cancun and Playa del Carmen areas. Numerous guests told the paper they believed they had been drugged or consumed tainted alcohol at the resorts.

One Wisconsin woman, 20-year-old Abbey Conner, died after being found face down in a pool at a property in January, just a few hours after arriving.

Some travelers told the Journal Sentinel they had only a drink or two before becoming ill. The paper spoke with dozens of people who reported problems after drinking at Mexican resorts.

The State Department told the Journal Sentinel that it updated its safety guidance after the reports the paper uncovered and after talking with department staff in Mexico.

"The safety and security of U.S. citizens overseas is one of our highest priorities," a department spokeswoman said in an email, according to the Journal Sentinel.

Many of the incidents the Journal Sentinel reported on involve properties owned by Iberostar, a Spanish company, although some other resorts including Secrets and Grand Oasis were named as well. Iberostar said it is cooperating with authorities, according to CNN.

Mexico's tourism secretary, Marisol Venegas, told the network the nation has not yet received any complaint or criminal case involving problems with alcohol. She said the Cancun region adheres to strict quality control measures when it comes to alcohol.

http://www.syracuse.com/us-news/inde...l_resorts.html

Why Tourists Are Blacking Out in Mexico

8:22 AM ET
July 27, 2017



The U.S. State Department has warned tourists visiting Mexico about "tainted" or "substandard" alcohol that can cause illness and blacking out."There have been allegations that consumption of tainted or substandard alcohol has resulted in illness or blacking out. If you choose to drink alcohol, it is important to do so in moderation and to stop and seek medical attention if you begin to feel ill," the department said in updated safety and security information Wednesday, USA Today reported.

The updated advice follows an investigation from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel after the death of a 20-year-old woman raised questions about the quality and strength of alcohol being served in Mexican resorts. Abbey Conner died while at a resort just north of Playa del Carmen, Mexico. She was found face down in the pool with her older brother, who survived, and was announced brain dead when flown back to Florida just a few days later, according to the report.

The Sentinel said their blood levels were three times over the limit that Wisconsin law considers to be impaired, yet they had only been at the resort for around two hours. Others have since come forward to say they've experienced similar blackouts.

"Following these reports and in consultation with our Posts in Mexico, we updated our Country Specific Information for Mexico to provide updated safety information regarding potentially tainted alcohol," the department official said in an email to the Sentinel.

In 2015, a report by Mexico's Tax Administration Service found that 43% of alcohol served in the country was illegally produced, according to USA Today.

http://time.com/4876137/tainted-alco...ng-out-mexico/

Tainted liquor may be responsible for tourist's death in Mexico, authorities say



July 27, 2017, 7:48 AM

Last Updated Jul 27, 2017 8:42 AM EDT

Mexico is the top international destination for U.S. travelers; nearly 30 million Americans visited the country last year alone.

People come to Mexico for the beautiful beaches and just unwind and let loose. But one Wisconsin family of four who visited in January to do just that lost their 20-year-old daughter.

She was found face down in a swimming pool after drinking.

The U.S. State Department is now warning Americans to consume alcohol in moderation while visiting Mexico, and to get medical help if they feel sick while drinking in the country.

"It's not a new concern in Mexico," says CBS News travel editor Peter Greenberg, "but what you have here is a perfect storm of more than one incident happening to people who don't know each other in different resorts. That is definitely a reason for concern."

In January, Abbey Conner and her family arrived at Paradiso del Mar for their vacation. It's one of the 10 Iberostar Hotel & Resort locations in Mexico.


Abbey Conner died at a resort in Mexico after allegedly drinking tainted alcohol.

By dinner time, Abbey and her 22-year-old brother Austin were reportedly found unconscious in the pool after drinking at the resort bar. Both were taken to the hospital. Abbey died days later.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports dozens of other people also claim to have been sickened by bad alcohol at Mexican resorts, and some of them also blacked out.

"They said I couldn't get out of the pool and I wasn't even able to stand up in the pool," Kathy Daley told the Sentinel.

Daley says she woke up in a Cancun hospital after staying at an Iberostar hotel.

"They said I was vomiting all over the place and they had to call the hotel doctor," she said.

More than 1.4 million gallons of tainted alcohol has been seized in Mexico since 2010. Some of the counterfeit alcohol is said to contain pure industrial ethanol -- an ingredient used in many rubbing alcohols.

Iberostar Hotels and Resorts told CBS News they "only purchase sealed bottles that satisfy all standards."

The state department tells CBS News that people who become sick after drinking in Mexico should immediately contact the nearest U.S. Embassy or consulate. The Iberostar hotel chain's management also said they were deeply saddened by the incident and that the safety and satisfaction of their guests is of the utmost importance.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/abbey-co...-tourist-dies/

allready alcohol is a poison so if they make that kind of poison these people are looking big person