S’pore clubs approach police over online rumours
Popular Singapore clubs Zouk and The Butter Factory have filed police reports over rumours online about a woman going around and attacking clubbers with a tainted syringe.
The woman, known online as the "Revenge Angel", was said to have been jabbing party-goers with a syringe containing Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)-infected blood, according to a newspaper report on Saturday.
So far, management at Zouk confirmed that no such woman has been seen either by its bouncers or on its closed-circuit television system.
They also told The New Paper that no individuals have come forward with complaints of being jabbed with a syringe.
Zouk's head of marketing and events Timothy Chia said that the club's management first head of the rumour on 6 July, and that its security manager lodged a report with the police the next day.
He added that the club's business had not since been affected, although the management takes the issue seriously.
Executive chairman of The Butter Factory Tay Eu-Yen said it was hit by the rumour at around the same time.
She said tight security has always been maintained, and once the club's management got wind of the rumour, its security had been informed and were told to keep a watchful eye.
"We believe it is only a rumour, yet it is vicious enough to cause potential panic," she added, saying that the club had posted notices to dispel the rumours on their official Twitter and Facebook pages. Checks with Zouk confirmed that they had taken similar steps.
Over the past fortnight, the rumour has been spread across social media platforms Twitter and Facebook, as well as online forums like HardwareZone.com.
While most netizens seemed unconvinced, others claimed to know of people who were attacked in the two clubs.
Checks with experts revealed that it is possible for HIV to be contracted in the method described in the "Revenge Angel" rumour. However, the blood has to be injected within hours of it being drawn from an infected person.
"The needle must also penetrate the skin of the victim and reach some blood deposits," said Roy Chan, president of voluntary organisation Action for Aids.
He added that it is possible for people who have been exposed to HIV-contaminated blood to seek treatment at a hospital within the first two days of exposure to reduce the risk of contracting the virus, the paper reported.
