Indonesian police probe 23 deaths linked to drink

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Police on Indonesia's Sumatra island said on Friday they were investigating the deaths of 23 people after they drank a beverage made of fermented pineapple.

Police seized 7,000 bottles of the drink from its factory in Jambi province and were questioning factory and shop owners, said provincial police spokesman Yatim Suyatmo.

The victims all died in the last two weeks although the factory had produced the drink locally for years, he said.

"We still don't know whether the victims had mixed the drink with another concoction to make its effects stronger," he said, adding the label stated that the drink contains less than 1 percent of alcohol.

Many areas of Indonesia have traditional fermented drinks made from fruit or other ingredients.