HELSINKI, Finland, Jan. 5 (UPI) -- Three people near Helsinki, Finland, are dead and a dozen have been hospitalized after drinking poisonous alcohol.
The victims, all adults and mostly males, consumed the poison booze during an evening of heavy drinking, the Helsingin Sanomat reported Friday. Police are investigating the incident and have arrested the suspected manufacturer of the bad liquor, which they believe was a homemade mixture with methanol or glycol-based poison added to it. All the people who are believed to have consumed the deadly concoction have been reached, the newspaper reported.
Locals who spoke to the Sanomat said there are persistent rumors around the town of Kauhava that the poisoning may have been an act of revenge. Some of the victims may have been given some of the drink to take home with them, which officials fear could lead to more widespread consumption of the poison.
Investigators plan to release a chemical analysis of the tainted alcohol in the next few days, the Sanomat reported.
