The number of deaths from consuming bootleg alcohol in Alborz Province west of Tehran has reached 12, medical officials say.

A total of 155 people in the province have also been referred to medical centers for alcohol poisoning symptoms, said Shahram Sayadi, Dean of Alborz University of Medical Sciences.

Meanwhile, five people are hospitalized in the intensive care unit.

Alborz authorities said the alcohol was sold by a body spray factory.

There is a possibility that this number of the deaths will go up as some of those who consumed the poisoned alcohol may have died in their homes, according to a judicial official in the province.

There are reports that some others have lost their vision and kidneys due to the consumption of poisonous alcohol.

Last year, at least eight people died in southern Iran after drinking toxic homemade alcohol.

Alcohol poisoning also caused the deaths of more than 44 people in Iran at the start of the Coronavirus outbreak in March 2020.

Iran has banned alcohol since 1979 and punishes those who violate the ban with floggings and fines. On the black market, however, there are a lot of foreign and homemade alcoholic beverages available.

Despite the Islamic regime’s ban, half of all adults regularly consume alcohol, according to a survey by Iran Open Data. Moreover, the majority prefer homemade beverages.

In 2018, a report by the World Health Organization (WHO) ranked Iran ninth among 189 countries for alcohol consumption per capita.