Authorities have launched an investigation and arrested three suspects, among them a 29-year-old man who is said to have organised illegal production of adulterated alcohol in the city of Orsk, where police believe they have located the building where the deadly drinks were made.
Adulterated alcohol that was illegally sold in the Orenburg region of Russia has led to the death of 17 of 33 people who came down with alcohol poisoning, according to local authorities.
Most of the victims affected were from villages in the Urals, 1,200 kilometres southeast of Moscow.
The region’s governor Denis Pasler has now called on the local population to stop buying alcohol for now.
According to Pasler, there has been a large-scale inspection of shops selling alcohol to remove unsafe drinks from circulation.
“Until the results are finalised, drinking alcohol can be life-threatening,’’ the governor warned.
Local authorities say, more than 1,000 bottles have been confiscated, although the alcohol in question is visibly indistinguishable from normal alcohol.
