Boys in hospital after drugs cocktail

Ecstasy tragedy: Father of dead girl makes plea for action on dealers as another teenager fights for his life

A 15-year-old boy was last night fighting for his life and another was recovering in hospital after they took a drugs cocktail including ecstasy.

Eddie Ingleby and Kenneth Williams were taken ill just hours before tragic Leah Betts lost her fight for life.

The schoolboys were taken to the Queen Alexandra Hospital in Cosham, Hampshire, after hallucinating at their homes on Wednesday night.

Kenneth was fighting for his life in the hospital's intensive care unit while Eddie was said to be "recovering". Both boys are from the Leigh Park area of Havant, Hampshire.

Kenneth's mother, Sandra Page, described how her son returned staggering and stumbling to their home in Winterslow Drive. She said he could not speak when he arrived home and added: "I'd like to string up whoever is responsible for this."

Kenneth's step-brother, Carl Page, said Kenneth kept falling over and bumping into things.

He said: "He went into the kitchen and tried buttering a plate. We thought he was just drunk. We put him to bed but he kept getting out and wanted to sleep on the floor. He got really aggressive when we went towards him."

The family called an ambulance at about 11pm and he was taken to hospital.

Eddie was taken to the hospital about an hour later, after his mother found him staggering uncontrollably around their home at Fleet End Close, Leigh Park.

Detectives in Portsmouth, Hampshire, warned yesterday that the drugs problem was so bad in the city that there could be "10 Leah Betts tragedies every week".

Detective Sergeant Nigel Midgley, of the drug squad, said Portsmouth's club scene attracted thousands of people from around the region each weekend and drugs were widely available.

"We have spoken to both the boys, but not surprisingly they do not want to tell us what they took. We believe that they took a cocktail of drugs, it's frighteningly easy to get hold of ecstasy, amphetamines and cannabis."

"We're now making inquiries to find out where they got the drugs from."

Portsmouth police estimate that the ecstasy trade in the city is worth a staggering pounds 13m a year.