A grandmother has spoken about her harrowing experience in Thailand, believing her drink was spiked which led to her wandering naked in her hotel. Janet West, 61, from Swansea, is sharing her story to alert others following an investigation into the deaths of six tourists in neighbouring Laos, suspected to be caused by methanol poisoning from adulterated alcoholic drinks.
Celebrating Thai New Year, Janet drank what she presumed to be a whisky and coke from a bucket with straws on Bangkok’s well-known Khaosan Road.
However, after going to bed, she says she thought she was dreaming about being escorted back to her room by hotel staff, only to learn later that it wasn’t a figment of her imagination. The hotel staff later confirmed she had been aimlessly roaming naked for four hours.
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Six people including a British student died after swallowing drinks mixed with methanol – a cheap, toxic substance used to ‘bulk out’ alcoholic drinks. Janet said staff said she was likely drinking ethanol laced drinks that night.
Janet West claims she drank from a spiked booze bucked at Thai New Year party in Laos
“I was lucky to survive and to have no side effects but I’m frightened to drink the local spirits in Thailand now,” she said.
“The local alcohol is not distilled properly and, although it’s cheap, it’s not worth the risk – stick to imported spirits or bottled beer.
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“It’s really difficult because shots are just poured down your neck in Thailand. They just knock on your door shouting ‘free shots’, and nobody questions them.
“I feel so sad for the unfortunate travellers in Laos, and so disgusted with the people who made the alcohol and sold it.”
Janet West on a beach in Thailand
Janet, a retiree who has worked in various fields including the army, bar work, and telephone banking, has been travelling solo around the world since 2022. She first fell in love with Thailand’s food, golden temples, warm sea and beautiful beaches in 2016.
After her terrifying visit in April 2019, she returned in 2023, but now drinks sparingly. Recalling a night when she believes she was poisoned, she says she was later informed by staff that she had walked naked out of the room she was sharing with her boyfriend shortly after going to sleep.
She later remembered thinking she was a pregnant teenager needing to get to a special delivery unit. She regained consciousness when hotel staff noticed her trying to leave the building and guided her back to her room.
She said: “On that visit we were buying buckets of whisky and coke but I haven’t a clue what we were really drinking.
“Afterwards people told me it was ethanol, because of the incomplete distillation process.”