ISTANBUL - The number of people known to have died after drinking counterfeit alcohol in Turkey's biggest city Istanbul rose to seven after two more people perished, a local official said Wednesday.
"Seven people have died" after drinking bootleg raki, a traditional Turkish drink made of aniseed, Istanbul governor Muammer Guler told a press conference here, the Anatolia news agency reported.
A total of 32 people were under treatment in hospitals after drinking the illegally produced drink with high levels of methyl alcohol, which causes death when drunk in large amounts, he added.
Police have raided at least two illegal factories where the bootleg was produced -- one in Istanbul and the other in the nearby province of Sakarya -- and detained several suspects, Anatolia said.
03/02/2005 18:01 GMT