A man was arrested by authorities in the UK over the hospitalization of three people, which include a minor, due to taking a legal high, and had taken several substances which include Geebs, the Guardian said in its latest report. Geebs is said to be used as a paint stripper, alloy cleaner or a rust remover and has been banned from selling as a drug, according to the UK newspaper.
Law enforcement were reportedly called at a Borden Court student accommodation at the Liverpool city center on Sunday at around 7:30AM in the morning following the collapse of two men, aged 20 and 22, and a girl aged 16 years old. The three were immediately sent to the Royal Liverpool University hospital for intensive care and were reportedly doing well.
Detective Superintendent Chris Green said, "We have spoken to a number of people who were at the party at Lawrence Road but we know that there were other people who were at the party and we would like them to come forward for two reasons. The first to check that they are safe and well and second to see if they have any information which could help us with our inquiries. We will be working with universities in the city in the coming days to warn students about the dangers that drugs and chemicals can have when taken, particularly if mixed with alcohol or other substances."
Merseyside police arrested a 19 year-old Worsley, Manchester native on allegations that he supplied a class-C drug, the Guardian said. Mirror UK said that Geebs, or GBL, is considered a class-C drug.
An earlier report by the paper said that an annual report of the National Programme on Substance Abuse Deaths credited a number of deaths to legal highs such as Meow, Meow and Benzo Fury, and said that the drugs had caused the narcotics-related deaths from 68 in 2012. Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs spokesman Prof Fabrizio Schifano promised that the council will be monitoring the alarming statistics. Crime prevention minister Norman Baker, on the other hand, started a review on legal highs, which may consider a broader legislation, the Guardian said. This could also include a potential reclassification of certain drugs.
