A woman was taken to hospital  after her drink appeared to have been spiked in the Slug and Lettuce in Brentwood. 

Police were called to the bar in the High Street at 12.50am on Sunday after a group of customers approached a member of staff with concerns for a woman in their group. 

Investigating officer, DC Jo Pilcher, said: "The victim, a 28-year-old woman, was drinking soft drinks with friends when she began to feel strange.

"Her friends then noticed what appeared to be some tablets in the bottom of her drink and we were called.

"The victim was taken to hospital in Romford for treatment and was discharged the following day.

"We are carrying out enquiries, including a review of CCTV, to establish who put the tablets in the drink.

"They have been sent for analysis and at this time we don’t know what they were but the victim’s reaction would suggest they contained something noxious.

"We would also like to remind all pub goers to keep an eye on their drinks and not leave them unattended.

"Incidents like this are uncommon but our advice is to remain alert to such possibilities at all times.

"More information on drink spiking is available in the Be Safe section of our website.”

Anyone who was in the bar and who may have any information is asked to call Loughton CID on 101 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.