Death toll from bootleg alcohol exceeds 50

ISTANBUL

Fatalities due to bootleg alcohol poisoning in Turkey continue to climb, exceeding 50 only in two weeks, as authorities crack down on counterfeit alcohol production across the country ahead of New Year’s celebrations.

In the last 24 hours, six more people died in different provinces due to methyl alcohol which is highly fatal if consumed.

Security authorities have been conducting operations in the country’s 81 provinces to apprehend those responsible for producing and selling illegal liquors.

The number of those detained in the ongoing operation across the country has reached 100, while 18 suspects were arrested by local courts.

Recently, one-and-a-half tons of bootleg alcohol were seized and two people were detained in an operation held in Büyükçekmece, a district on the far western side of Istanbul.

Fatalities have been reported in the provinces of Gaziantep, Kahramanmaraş, Sivas, Yalova, Erzincan, Aksaray, Mersin, Kocaeli and Zonguldak since last week but Istanbul had the highest fatalities with 22.

The local authority in the Turkish metropolis said that 11 of the 22 fatalities were foreign nationals, however, it was not disclosed which countries they were from.

The skyrocketing rise in the prices of alcoholic beverages has encouraged fraudsters and has led people to fail to differentiate liquids produced in illegal laboratories.

Experts repeatedly warn drinkers not to buy from unlicensed sellers or attempt to distill their own drinks at home with unfamiliar materials.