FAST-FOOD giant Burger King last night said it was cooperating with authorities after a suspected heroin needle and other drugs paraphernalia were found in a toilet in one of its busiest restaurants. The firm issued a statement yesterday after The Irish News revealed how the used needle, along with a small silver pan and blood-stained cloth, were left at a branch close to Belfast City Hall.
The grim discovery was made in a public toilet by boxing coach Tommy Kelly, who was so shocked that he photographed the items before approaching managers.
Burger King yesterday confirmed an incident had happened at its donegall Place restaurant on sunday night. A spokesman said: "We're cooperating fully with the local authorities but cannot comment further on the investigation." Alex Bunting from FASA, which works with those affected by substance abuse, said the discovery was unusual for Belfast. "We don't have the same intravenous drug-using population as the rest of the UK," he said. "There is a lot of hard work that does go on with needle exchange programmes. There's a lot of time invested from the Public
Health agency right through to the drug outreach teams to ensure that intravenous drug users use and disregard the paraphernalia safely. "We've heard of things like this happening in the past where needles have been found in parks. "We would ask drug users to be proactive and to engage with the needle exchange programmes and ensure that they obtain needles but also get rid of needles in a safe and measured manner."