Diners Hallucinate After Restaurant Meal That Had Poppy Seeds

A chef and two helpers were arrested Tuesday after several customers started hallucinating post dining at a restaurant in the Malaysian state of Perak on Sunday.

Customers complained of weakness not long after dining at the Sultana Nasi Kandar restaurant in the town of Teluk Intan. A police complaint was filed the following day. Police along with the state Health Department carried out an inspection at the restaurant Tuesday and detained three men. All of them tested positive for opiates.

Hilir Perak district deputy police chief Yahaya Hassan said several dishes were also seized and sent to the Department of Chemistry for inspection.

"A translucent plastic packet containing poppy seeds was also seized," he said.

A source said, “The owner of the premise stated that his food do not contain any illegal substances; however, ingredients such as small amounts of poppy seed powder had been used by the cook,” the World Of Buzz reported.

Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said, “I just got the news, I’m sure this is now a police case. I’m still waiting for further reports so I cannot comment (about it), but the Ministry of Health will monitor the matter,” the Sun Daily reported.

A Whatsapp message regarding the incident was heavily circulated in the state. According to the message, three men and a police officer failed a drug test post dining at the restaurant. It also said the cook was taken into custody. The details, however, were not confirmed by authorities.

The incident was investigated under the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.

In a similar incident earlier this month, a restaurant in Spain was temporarily shut after a woman died of eating a mushroom dish. María Jesús Fernández Calvo went to the restaurant along with her child and husband to enjoy a meal which consisted of rice and mushroom. She died after suffering from vomiting and diarrhea. Several diners including her son and husband experienced the same symptoms. The official cause of the woman’s death was not known and the investigation was ongoing.

"We will have to wait... before we can determine whether it was the ingestion of a food that directly caused her death, or whether it prompted a state that led to this fatal outcome," said Ana Barceló, the regional health chief.