Police have arrested a man on suspicion of spiking another man's drink in a Northern Quarter bar, it's been revealed. The suspect - who is 22 - was held on suspicion of administering a noxious substance, Greater Manchester Police confirmed.
He remained in custody today - Saturday - for questioning. The bar concerned is on Lever Street in Manchester's Northern Quarter, near Stevenson Square.
Police said the victim - a man in his 20s - wasn't taken to hospital after the incident on Friday night. GMP said the bar's CCTV operators witnessed the incident and reported it to police based in the city centre.
The arrest was then made. The victim was said be police to be 'okay'. He didn't drink from the drink he had, but police said the bar's staff used a specialist testing kit to confirm traces of a noxious substance.
In a statement on their social media accounts, Greater Manchester Police said: "Our Manchester cops detained a man overnight after another man's drink is suspected to have been spiked in the Northern Quarter.
"CCTV operators alerted us to the incident and bar staff used their specialist testing kit to confirm traces of a noxious substance from the victim's drink. The victim, thankfully, didn't have the drink is okay. A man in his 20s remains in custody."
"Our patrols are working to ensure everyone in GM can enjoy their night, safe from predatory behaviour in all forms."
The incident comes amid the launch of a new policing operation focusing on Greater Manchester's towns and centres at night.
Operation Lioness was initially set up in 2021 in response to the nationwide call for police forces to crack down on violence against women and girls, but has developed to see a dedicated team of officers patrol local town centres across Greater Manchester on the look out for anyone 'committing predatory behaviour', GMP said.
Chief Superintendent Nicky Porter said: "The operation will take place every Friday and Saturday night moving forward and we will be covering not only local licensed premises and high streets, but transport links such as the trams and buses which will be monitored by our officers.
"As well as officers on the ground, we will also have staff in our control rooms monitoring CCTV in hotspot areas so patrols can be sent directly to any suspicious or dangerous situations which may be unfolding."
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