‘She Was a Victim of Circumstance’: Woman Acquitted of Impaired Driving Charge After Found to Have Unknowingly Drank Recalled 77% ABV Gin

In 2017, a batch of Bombay Sapphire gin was recalled after it was found to have been mistakenly bottled at 77% ABV. (Photo: Craig Dennis/Pexels)

A woman has been acquitted of an impaired driving charge in Montreal after a judge ruled that she unknowingly drank cocktails made from gin that was almost twice the alcohol percentage than it was labeled at, according to Montreal Gazette.

The gin in question is a batch of Bacardi’s Bombay Sapphire London dry that was recalled in 2017 after an error in the bottling process resulted in an undiluted, 77% ABV spirit — instead of the usual 40% ABV. Nearly 6,000 bottles of the accidentally high-proof gin were distributed in Canada before a single “unsatisfied customer” informed the brand that its gin did not “meet expectations,” reported NPR.

Following a quality assurance investigation, a nationwide effort was issued to destroy the bottles. Yet, over 1,000 remained unaccounted for in Ontario alone, despite The Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s pleas to “resist the urge to mix up a superstrength martini or gin and tonic,” per NPR.

Montreal Gazette reported that Aroua Ben Mohamed drank two cocktails unknowingly made from this overproof gin in late January 2017 before experiencing a “blackout” and crashing her car while on her way home from a get-together with friends. Ben Mohamed mentioned not understanding how she has ended up in that state and later found out about the gin recall. 

Following an evening of moderate imbibing, Ben Mohamed “left the premises with the other two guests”  and “felt quite normal and in control of herself,” stated Montreal municipal court Judge Katia Mouscardy in last month’s trial. Yet, police found Ben Mohamed struggling to park with a badly damaged vehicle around 1 a.m.

In shock and unable to recall what had happened to her car, Ben Mohamed was found to have blood alcohol levels that were more than twice the maximum allowed in Canada, reported Montreal Gazette. However, the police made a mistake when describing her right to a lawyer, leading to the exclusion of her breathalyzer readings as evidence, per the report. Accordingly, she was only tried for impaired driving, omitting the previous additional charge of driving over the legal alcohol limit.

“Ben Mohamed was not negligent or reckless in her consumption of alcohol before driving,” the judge concluded, according to Montreal Gazette. “She couldn’t tell, even from reading the label on the bottle, that the volume of alcohol it contained was nearly double that stated.”

Defense attorney Francis Le Borgnes stated, “She was a victim of circumstance,” while highlighting the fact that Ben Mohamed had apologized for that night numerous times but has consistently asserted that she didn’t understand how she got so drunk, Montreal Gazette reported.

“She was absolutely not responsible for what happened,” Le Borgne added.

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