New Year party preparations have caused concern for consumers: thousands of bottles of bogus vodka with deadly chemicals have been found for sale across Britain, according to The Telegraph.
Retailers across the U.K. have been warned about booze at bargain prices during this week of festivity. Trading Standards officers confiscated 166 bottles of counterfeit vodka from three Luton shops, according to The Telegraph. A raid on a factory in Derbyshire turned up "2,000 empty bottles, filling equipment and empty cans of antifreeze."
Counterfeit Smirnoff containing a chemical used in antifreeze was also seized in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset.
Glen's and Kommissar were removed from the Luton shops after officers noticed the labels incorrectly said "botteled" (not "bottled"). Fake duty-paid labels were found on the Kommissar bottles.
Samples of the alcohol were taken and found to contain isopropanol, an industrial solvent, and butanol, which is used in paint remover.
"Drinking these chemicals could cause serious illness or even death in extreme cases," said Councillor Aslam Khan, portfolio holder for public health, according to The Telegraph. "Many unsuspecting consumers may think they are buying cheap duty-free alcohol, when they are actually buying fake and dangerous products."
