“Didn’t know if I was going to faint or die”: Victims tell trial how deadly bottle of champagne changed their lives

Because suddenly they all developed symptoms of poisoning. When police and emergency workers arrived shortly after midnight, one of the guests was lying on the floor and some were also foaming at the mouth. They were taken to hospital but one of them, a 52-year-old man, did not survive.

It soon became clear to the police: the bottle of champagne had been poisoned. This also became apparent later in the investigation. The bottle did not contain champagne but liquid MDMA. She was used by a gang to smuggle drugs. The bottles containing the drugs were not intended for the restaurant, but that happened after several bottles were stolen. Ultimately, a 46-year-old Dutchman was arrested who was responsible for the “logistical coordination” and the sale of the bottles. He is now on trial for manslaughter and organized drug trafficking.

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Brown-purple drink

On Monday, videos made by one of the victims that evening in February were shown in the Bavarian court. It showed the bartender opening the white bottle of Moët Ice Imperial at the table and pouring the contents into gold and pink glasses. One of the victims said that with the first sip he noticed that something was wrong because the champagne was undrinkable. After just a few seconds, his entire body began to shake, the victim told the Bavarian court. “I didn’t know if I was going to faint or die,” he said.

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Another victim also said he immediately knew something was wrong. Nicole Bock described the stale and sour taste of the drink in court on Monday. She said that the drink looked brownish-purple and she ran to the toilet after drinking it to vomit. There she lost consciousness. She only woke up in the hospital, where she also had hallucinations.

Still symptoms

It is one of the symptoms that victims still suffer from today after that night. Some would also experience muscle tremors, nausea, cramps and unconsciousness.

41-year-old Carola Potrz is also still experiencing problems today after drinking the fake champagne. She lost consciousness that evening, suffered a brain haemorrhage and was taken to hospital by helicopter. She spent weeks in a rehabilitation center but was unable to return to work afterwards. In court she talked about the muscle twitching, pain and physical limitations she still experiences today.

In the weeks and months after that evening, such bottles appeared again in various places in the Netherlands and Germany. The Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain then warned of a possible second fate involved. “The bottles probably contain MDMA (ecstasy). The products were sold through various points of sale in Belgium and online,” it said at the time. No incidents were reported in Belgium at the time.

Bron: Bayerischer Rundfunk, VRT,