A Sinn Féin TD is introducing legislation that would jail those who spike drinks for up to 10 years.
The move comes following reports that a 92-year-old man was out having a pint in a rural pub and was spiked by those who thought it would be funny to see his reaction.
On The Claire Byrne Show, Dublin Mid-West TD Mark Ward said it was “shocking” to hear that an elderly gentleman had been targeted in such a way.
“To me, that is absolutely abhorrent,” he said.
“It's horrific and there should be consequences for that.”
Empty pints. Picture by: Sam Boal/RollingNews.Deputy Ward added that he had heard that the victim will not go back to the pub, because of fear and humiliation.
However, it is clear that the elderly gentleman is not the only victim of spiking.
“I've done a lot of consultation in relation to preparing for this bill,” he said.
“And speaking to other groups, the likes of Spike in Ireland or Safe Gigs Ireland, who are at the likes of Electric Picnic and places like that.
“They've told me that this is a new phenomenon where people are spiking other people just for the craic, just to see what would happen.
“Which, to me, is absolutely horrific and it's totally wrong.”
Reporting
Since 2022, 278 reports of spiking have been made to An Garda Síochána since 2022.
While people who spike could be charged under the Non-Fatal Offences Against The Person Act, there have been no prosecutions to date.
Despite this, Deputy Ward added that people who work to combat this phenomenon strongly believe that the numbers represent “only the tip of the iceberg”.
“A lot of times people don't go to the Guards, they go to the hospital,” he said.
“Then because they go to hospital, the hospital don't keep that data, whether someone presents a spiking and that's where the numbers are really, really low.”
Deputy Ward said spiking is usually only discussed as part of a wider conversation about sexual assault.
However, he believes it should be a standalone offence which, in the most serious cases, merits a decade in jail.
“We need to recognise that the act of spiking itself is already a violation - a person's bodily autonomy is taken away from them,” he argued.
“Their ability to make decisions about their own safety has been interfered with and their consent has been disregarded entirely.
“So, for example, that 92 year old man, as far as I know, he wasn't sexually assaulted, he wasn't robbed, he wasn't harmed anywhere except for being spiked.
“To me, spiking should be a standalone offence and the people who spiked that man should face criminal sanctions and they should be severe.”
The Spiking Offences Bill 2026 is currently at First Stage before Dáil Éireann.
Main image: An prisoner in handcuffs. Picture by: Laura Hutton/RollingNews.ie
