Rudy Eugene. Photocredit: Allvoices
The background
In Miami, Florida, 31 year old homeless man Rudy Eugene was shot and killed by police after he was caught trying to eat the face off a man. Both were naked, and they were by the side of a highway, the MacArthur Causeway. Eugene’s victim was 65-year-old homeless man Ronald Poppo, who is in hospital. Eugene, who reportedly tore off 75 percent of Poppo’s face, is being called “The Miami Zombie.”
So what was behind the shocking attack? Police had originally thought that it was induced by cocaine psychosis; now they think that “bath salts” may have played a role. Bath salts are a synthetic hallucinogen that has risen 20-fold in usage last year, found The Daily Beast. It’s causing major problems, with medical staff under threat. An autopsy is still required to determine whether bath salts were a factor, reported Reuters. Eugene had a history of arrests, mostly for marijuana-related offences, said the news site.
“A police officer climbed over the divider and got in front of him and said ‘get off’ and told him several times, and the guy just stood his head up like that with a piece of flesh in his mouth and growled,” said eyewitness Larry Vega, quoted on The Daily Beast.
What are bath salts?
Bath salts, said Jacqui Goddard on The Daily Beast, lead to high blood pressure, heart palpitations, hallucinations, delusions and paranoia – that often leads to users harming themselves or others. You can buy a pack for $15. It causes super strength, too, and often makes users feel like they’re melting – hence why Eugene removed his clothes.
Don’t do it, kids
Well, said Dan Amira on New York Magazine, if you were thinking about trying a hallucinogenic drug, think again. “Not becoming a flesh-eating zombie is my anti-drug.”
There have been other attacks
Matt Stopera on Buzzfeed suggested some other reasons why you shouldn’t try bath salts: you might drink hand sanitiser; you might kill a goat; and perhaps, more crucially, you might eat someone’s face. That’s not to mention attacking your own mother with a machete – or even a priest.
Head for the hills
Gawker pointed out that there have been a lot of zombie related stories coming from California recently. There have been “mysterious rashes”; an “unknown chemical” causing trouble; a man spitting blood; another man threw his own intestines at police officers. “Forget Facebook Stock: Invest in a good bunker.”
WTF is going on!?Faces eaten: dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2…Hearts ripped out: dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1…Flesh flung at people: huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/29/way…
— Loco Mike Mason (@LocoMikeMason) May 30, 2012
