Woman suffered hallucinations after buying bracelet on eBay

A mother told how a ‘toxic’ bracelet which caused a public health scare caused her to lose her boyfriend, her home and her job. Jo Wollacott, 40, suffered abscesses, hives and hallucinations after buying the Jequirity bean bracelet for £1 on eBay two years ago.


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Her life fell apart and her mental health deteriorated so much she had to be sectioned in a clinic. Ms Wollacott thought it was down to bad luck until she read a public health warning about the bracelets, revealing the beans contained the banned toxin abrin. The substance is prohibited under the Terrorism Act because just three micrograms could kill if swallowed.

The mother of two said: ‘Everybody around me thought my life was just spiralling out of control because I was going through a stressful time. But now I realise that my problems started when I bought this bracelet. When I found out hallucinations were part of the side effects of the poisoning I started to piece things together.’


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Ms Wollacott, from Bridport, Dorset, wore only one of a batch of the red-and-black ‘love’ bracelets she bought from the internet auction site in April 2010. Since sealing it in a box in December her health has been transformed. The Health Protection Agency said: ‘Abrin is a poison and even small amounts, if ingested, can be fatal.’