Police on Tuesday clarified that a man seen in a viral video in a disoriented state on a road in Thane was not under the influence of a so-called “zombie drug,” but had taken an overdose of Pregabalin, a medicine used to treat nerve pain.
The video, which surfaced on April 15, showed a man standing in a dizzy condition in the Bhayander area of Maharashtra’s Thane city.
Taking note of the clip, the crime detection branch was directed to trace the person and verify claims made on social media that he was under the influence of the alleged “zombie drug”, the Mira Bhayander-Vasai Virar police said in a release.
“During the investigation, it was found that the video was recorded at around 10 pm on April 13 and the person seen in the footage was identified as Sameer Rajendra Rawal (22), a labourer hailing from Achham district in Nepal and currently living on a footpath outside Borivali Railway Station in Mumbai,” the police said.
The man was traced to a road in Bhayander on April 17. During questioning, he disclosed that he had come from Nepal last month in search of work and had been addicted to consuming Pregabalin tablets for the last two years, the release said.
“He informed that he used to purchase a strip of 10 tablets for Rs 100 and consume them for intoxication,” it said.
After coming to Bhayander, he procured the tablets from a medical shop in Navghar without any prescription. On April 13, he consumed five Pregabalin tablets at once. Subsequently, while walking in the Bhayander area, he felt dizzy and was unable to move, which left him standing in one place, the police said.
“It has been established that the incident occurred due to excessive consumption of Pregabalin, which is a Schedule-H drug used for nerve pain. No substance such as a ‘zombie drug’ was involved,” they said.
A team, along with officials from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), inspected the medical shop from where the tablets were procured. It was found that the shopkeeper had left the area after the video went viral.
A report has been submitted to the FDA, Thane, for necessary action against the medical shopkeeper for illegally supplying Schedule-H drugs without a valid prescription, the police added.
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