Five MU students hospitalized after allegedly ingesting narcotic

MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- FOX6 News has learned five Marquette University students were hospitalized over the weekend for allegedly ingesting an illegal narcotic.

"McCormick's a freshman dorm, so you know, these kids - hopefully - would know what they're getting into but you never know. I'll bet you the parents are the most concerned," one MU student told FOX6 News.

On Wednesday, January 22nd, the Marquette University community learned more about the incident that occurred over the weekend.

"You think it's gonna be like, okay -- they experiment and then they're done -- but you never expect that they have to learn the lesson this way," another MU student told FOX6 News.

University administrators declined an interview request and have not named the alleged illegal narcotic involved in this case, but issued a statement which reads, in part:

"Marquette's Department of Public Safety responded to a medical incident Sunday night (January 19th) at McCormick Hall, and after an officer arrived, they discovered that five students ingested an alleged illegal narcotic. Due to medical concerns and the safety of the students involved, all were taken to Sinai Samaritan Hospital for treatment and evaluation. One female student was also taken into custody by MPD for allegedly distributing narcotics."

"It happens more frequently than you would think. It was just that these five were so severe that they had to go to the hospital," Patricia Gutierrez, an Alcohol and Drug Abuse Services Director with IMPACT said.

Gutierrez says drug use is increasing on college campuses, so parents and others should be aware.

"If they start sounding differently. If they're like, with a different group of friends -- 'hey, who are your friends?' If they're running with a different pack of kids, you know, they're just more silent 'oh yeah, everything's fine' -- they don't wanna talk the way they used to -- something is up. You need to check into it," Gutierrez said.

If you're concerned someone may be abusing drugs and/or alcohol, you're encouraged to contact the folks at Impact.

More information is available by CLICKING HERE.