Popular Northampton nightclub defends itself over drink and needle spiking reports
‘We have become a target for those people looking to carry out crime,’ says club. Police say they have no concerns about the venue
A popular nightclub in Northampton town centre says it has ‘become a target’ for drink and needle spiking reports at its establishment and says it goes ‘above and beyond to ensure security is paramount’.
Drink spiking and spiking by needle injection has become a notorious issue in the town centre’s night time economy since September 2021, with young women mainly being the targets.
Spiking started to die down in the summer of 2022, according to police data, but the crime is believed to have returned over the Christmas and New Year period following numerous reports to this newspaper. Most recently, a 21-year-old man said he suffered a ‘savage’ spiking on Sunday, January 22 that almost killed him.
Many Chron readers have pointed the finger at one club in particular, NB's in Bridge Street, probably the busiest club in the town.
This newspaper sent off a list of questions to NB's, Northamptonshire Police and West Northants Council (WNC) to try and make sense of the allegations. NB’s has outlined its view on the issue. Both Northamptonshire Police and WNC say they have no reason to be concerned about the venue.
NBs
The club says it has been 'working tirelessly' for the last 18 months to keep the venue safe.
NB’s believes it has 'become a target' for crime because it is a 'popular venue'.
Asked why many people have claimed they have been spiked at NB's since September 2021, a club spokeswoman said: "As we are such a popular venue and are generally a place people visit after having drinks elsewhere first, we have become a target for those people looking to carry out crimes, which saddens us as much as it disappoints others.”
When asked if there was a problem with spiking at NB's, the spokeswoman said: "At NB’s we go above and beyond to ensure security is paramount every day. Whilst we are always concerned by any allegation, report or incident within the town, we provide extensive measures to help customers protect themselves, review our processes frequently and undertake in-depth training for all of our staff.
"We consider NB’s to be a safe and enjoyable night out. We have extensive measures including products that customers can use for free including 'Spikeys' which protect bottles and StopTopps which protect drinks in glasses, we have security teams who carry out searches on everyone at the point of entry, throughout our premises and review what we are doing frequently to ensure we keep customers safe. As mentioned previously, we provide searching and checks to ensure we keep our premises safe.
"All customers are searched before entry by trained SIA security and are required to provide their ID at the point of entry to be scanned securely. We also provide drug sniffer dogs at the venue randomly throughout the year which are trained to detect several banned substances."
“Spikings can cause danger to life and can ultimately cause death, which horrifies us.
"The police work tirelessly to find these culprits and no stone is left unturned with any claim."
NB's went on to urge victims to report any incidents to both the club and police.
"We urge victims to approach a member of our team and report to the police as soon as they feel they have been put into any danger with their health. We also urge victims to speak to us at any point of an evening if they feel unwell or have witnessed anything untoward," the spokeswoman said.
The club said any police investigation has its 'full support and transparency'.
"We have a close relationship with Northamptonshire Police and our licensing team to ensure our measures are robust and keep people safe,” the spokeswoman said.
"When an allegation comes to our attention, we record this as an incident internally and investigate accordingly. We always encourage any customer to report any concern to a member of our team and the police at their earliest convenience.”
NB’s added that it supports the use of undercover and uniformed officers at the venue and said it allows police to have ‘full access to its ‘newly updated CCTV system which records in 4k with audio’, allowing the club to see ‘both internally and externally across the venue’.
Northamptonshire Police
Asked how many spikings have been reported at NB's since September 2021, police said they are 'unable to give a number' because of the way they record the data.
"I am unable to give this number as often, reports come from individuals who have visited multiple venues across the course of the evening. To label NB’s as the venue it definitely happened in would not be fair or accurate," the police spokeswoman said.
Northamptonshire Police went on to say that no one has been arrested or charged in connection with spikings at NB's as part of Operation Kalon since reports began in September 2021.
A police spokeswoman said: "NB’s has not been identified as a place of concern for spikings and they have worked with us to put measures in place to try and mitigate any spikings that people may attempt to carry out inside their venue."
The force spokeswoman added that NB's 'always comply’ with any requests for CCTV and that the police's licensing team has regular meetings to discuss any issues.
West Northants Council
The council said its licensing team has had 'no reason to inspect NB’s since 2021', which was to ensure Covid-19 rule compliance.
WNC went on to say that it has received no complaints from the public or police in regards to spiking at NB's since September 2021.
A spokesman said: "We have been made aware of some alleged reports of drink spiking in a few venues across the area, but we have as yet not had these verified.
"We are unaware of any verified incidents linked with any establishments in the area."
The council said there is no planned inspection of the club in the near future.
The spokeswoman said: "We take complaints of venues not complying with licensing regulations very seriously. If we receive information that venues are not compliant, officers will work with partners to investigate, work with venues to resolve issues and if appropriate, the Licensing Committee will consider what measures are necessary."