Lady thieves spike their dates’ drinks with ‘sweet dreams,’ then steal their stuff

Four Cuenca men were taken to a local hospital Saturday morning after friends found two of them unconscious in their historic district apartment. Police say that the men had been robbed of cash and other belongings.

Beware “sweet dreams.”

According to one of the victims, the four men had been drinking with “some attractive ladies” when they lost consciousness. “It was the old ‘sweet dreams’ trick and we should have known better. They spiked our drinks with scopolamine and we didn’t see it.”

According to police, “sweet dreams” crimes are common in Guayaquil and Quito but rare in Cuenca. The crime, most often committed by women who target men in bars, involves putting the drug scopolamine, or a similar substance, in drinks and robbing the victims when they lose consciousness.

Several dozen male tourists were victims last year in Guayaquil. Two Cuenca expats had “sweet dreams” in 2016, police say.

According to police, 911 personnel are reviewing video camera images taken near the intersection of Antonio Vega Muñoz and Benigno Malo in Cuenca’s historic district, close to the victims’ apartment.