A champagne mixed with ecstasy is said to have led to the death of a 52-year-old man in Weiden in the Upper Palatinate. An initial toxicological investigation revealed: “There were things in it that actually don’t occur in champagne,” said the chief public prosecutor in Weiden, Gerd Schäfer. The bottle, which was shared by several restaurant visitors on Saturday evening, contained the drug ecstasy, according to the public prosecutor’s office “in considerable concentration”https://www.sueddeutsche.de/bayern/. “It had a toxic, poisonous effect,” said Shepherd. According to media reports, the champagne is said to have been in its original packaging and only opened at the table.
It is not yet clear how the drug got into the champagne bottle. Investigators are currently ruling out a targeted attack. According to the public prosecutor, there is a suspicion of negligent homicide. Detected in all directions. “There are suspicions.” Schäfer initially did not want to give any details – not even whether someone was already listed as a suspect.
An autopsy of the deceased was also ordered, according to the Oberpfalz police headquarters. This is usually carried out in forensic medicine in Erlangen, the results are not yet known.
At first, rumors circulated in the media that the restaurant guests had poisoned themselves with hydrocyanic acid. According to the police, there had been a fire brigade operation at the Regensburg University Hospital in connection with the events in Weiden. Apparently, one or more affected people from Weiden were admitted there who were suspected that they had “come into contact with a hazardous substance,” according to the Regensburg fire brigade. The emergency room had to be closed for a short time, and the fire brigade and staff initiated decontamination. A short time later, however, there were laboratory results and the all-clear.
It is clear so far that several guests between the ages of 33 and 52 shared a bottle of champagne in a restaurant in Weiden. Soon after, all symptoms of poisoning became noticeable, as the investigators said. When police and rescue workers arrived at the scene, several people were lying on the ground and having seizures. Eight of those affected came to various hospitals, a 52-year-old from the Schwandorf district died on Sunday night. According to the police, one of the victims has now been able to leave the hospital.
The restaurant is located in the center of the pedestrian zone in the city of 42,000 inhabitants. A special commission of the Weiden criminal police called “Markt” has taken over the investigation. Some of the restaurant guests affected could already be questioned on Monday, and more witnesses are to follow.