More than 180 people poisoned in Iran after drinking counterfeit alcohol

A total of 15 people have died of "counterfeit" alcohol poisoning in the northern Iranian province of Alborz over the past 6 days.

Some 182 people suffering from poisoning symptoms have been referred to the province's hospitals in this period, of whom 40 are still hospitalized, with five in intensive care units, president of Alborz University of Medical Sciences Shahram Sayyadi said.

On Saturday, Alborz Province's Chief Justice Hossein Fazeli Herikandi said over links to the incident, three distributors of alcoholic drinks were identified and arrested, through whom a number of the major distributors of industrial-grade alcohol in the province were captured.

He said it was found that the industrial alcohol had been "illegally" sold by the owner of a hairspray production factory in Eshtehard County in Alborz.