‘Aftershave tainted’ alcohol kills 42 and puts 150 in hospital after Christmas party
Four men have been identified who prepared and made the liquor but one reportedly died after drinking it
AT least 42 people are believed to have died after drinking a home-made alcohol mixed with aftershave at a Christmas party.
The group, thought to be religious Christians held a party in eastern Punjab, Pakistan, was but fell ill after drinking "moonshine" liquor on Christmas Eve.
Around 150 fell unconscious and were taken to clinics and the death toll currently stands at 42, .
A number of funerals have been held across the district as family members mourn the loss of their relatives.
"Four people have been identified who prepared and distributed the toxic liquor," senior police official Atif Imran, who is investigating the case, told AFP, adding the group had also consumed the alcohol themselves.
"One of them died because of the liquor, two others are in critical condition while the fourth is in police custody," he added.
The suspect in police custody had confessed to preparing the brew by mixing it with 20 litres of aftershave and other chemicals.
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The development was confirmed by another senior police official Usman Akram Gondal.
Though legal breweries exist in Pakistan, alcohol sales and consumption are banned for Muslims and tightly regulated for minorities and foreigners.
While wealthy Pakistanis buy foreign alcohol on the black market at heavily inflated prices, the poor often resort to home brews that can contain methanol, commonly used in anti-freeze and fuel.
Earlier this month it was reported that at least 41 people in a Russian city died after knocking back scented bath oil in a desperate search for booze.
Use of bootleg booze is rife in Russia’s regions, where two years of economic pain have left some people destitute.
Russian media reported that the victims were poor residents of Irkutsk, a hard scrabble city around 2,600 miles east of Moscow.
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