No-one has been charged with drink spiking in Suffolk over the past six years.

The Suffolk police figures, obtained following a Freedom of Information (FoI) request by this newspaper, showed there have been a total of 79 reports of drink spiking in the county since 2015.

No criminal charges have been brought by police over those reports and in 45 of the cases, no suspect was identified.

In 16 reports, a suspect was identified but evidential difficulties or the victim not supporting any police action preventing the cases going any further.

Reports of spiking by injection were not able to be included in the FoI response and the figures were correct up to October 12, 2021.

More recently, Suffolk police said more than 30 cases of drink spiking were reported to the force last month.

Officers confirmed that 33 cases — 17 through 'needle spiking', 15 through drink tampering, and one by an unknown method — were reported to them during the month of November.

A number of people have come forward in recent weeks believing to be the victims of drink spiking.

These include Morgan Beard, who was allegedly spiked at the Plough when she visited the Ipswich pub.

Another victim was 22-year-old Chloe Ward from Trimley St Martin. She believes she was the victim of a needle spiking while out with friends on Saturday, October 30 in a bar in Ipswich.

A further woman was taken to hospital after a possible spiking in Bury St Edmunds after she became unwell on Saturday, November 27.

Anyone convicted of drink spiking could face up to 10 years in prison.

Speaking last week, Chief Superintendent Marina Ericson, from Suffolk police, urged people to continue reporting any offences as soon as possible.

“Everyone has the right to enjoy a night out in a safe environment. We continue to work closely with local authorities and licensed premises to put in measures to reduce offending, reassure the public and support the night-time economy industry," she said.

“We continue to ask that incidents are reported to both police and ambulance as early as possible so the necessary health and initial forensic enquires can be carried out.

“We have a clear plan to reassure and engage with the licensed community and patrons.

"Overall, this includes working with our community safety partners and also third sector volunteer agencies, such as the town pastors, who support us in the night time economy."

She added: "We are encouraging licensed premises to conduct increase bag checks, also asking them to ensure their CCTV is of a good quality and their system is working.

"We understand how crucial it is for people to have confidence in us, to trust us, believe they will be treated sympathetically, and be given the support and help they need.”