A group of diners who stepped out for a simple, hearty meal at a restaurant wound up in hospital beds after being served dry ice instead of mouth freshener.
The restaurant’s manager was arrested after the unsuspecting diners were left with cuts and burns in their mouths.
The shocking series of events began at a restaurant named Laforestta Cafe in the northern city of Gurugram in India. The group of diners were served what they thought was some kind of mouth freshener after their meal. However, soon after having some of the substance, the diners began puking blood and feeling a burning sensation in their mouths.
A video shared on social media shows the affected patrons in visible distress as they puked blood.
Image credits: nehu_sabharwal
“It burned our mouth like some acid attack [had] happened,” said one of the victims.
One father, who was part of the group, said he hadn’t consumed the substance but helplessly watched the rest of the group throwing up blood right inside the restaurant.
“Upon consuming it, they experienced a burning sensation in their mouths, followed by bleeding… they started throwing up blood. I did not consume the mouth freshener, as I was holding my one-year-old daughter, Durvaksi, in my lap,” the father told a local news outlet.
“We inquired about the contents of what we were given, and the waiter showed us an open polythene packet, which I took possession of,” he added.
It is believed the customers were served dry ice instead of mouth freshener
The affected diners were rushed to the hospital and admitted after the bizarre incident. One doctor reportedly examined the substance that the patients consumed and said it appeared to be dry ice.
“The doctor advised us to hand over the packet to the hospital… He said it could be fatal,” the father added.
The police are conducting an investigation and said they are waiting to confirm the nature of the substance served to the diners.
“Prima facie, it is dry ice, and the staff mistook it for mouth freshener,” a police official said.
The restaurant's manager was arrested, and an investigation is underway
Image credits: nehu_sabharwal
The restaurant’s manager, identified as Gagandeep, was arrested following the incident.
"We have arrested the 30-year-old manager of the cafe, Gagandeep, who is a resident of Delhi, and the restaurant owner, Amritpal Singh, is currently on the run," a police official said.
The manager blamed the staff’s negligence for the grave incident that led to five people needing hospital treatment.
"In the preliminary interrogation, the arrested manager said it was due to negligence by the restaurant staff that a packet of mouth freshener and dry ice got mixed mistakenly. He said there was no ill-intention towards the guests and what happened was unfortunate," added the police official.