Spanish Porn Star Investigated For Alleged Manslaughter

A 46-year-old Spanish porn star, Nacho Vidal, is being investigated for manslaughter after a man died from inhaling toad venom vapour in his house.

He was named as a suspect after fashion photographer Jose Luis Abad died from inhaling fumes from a Colorado River toad near Valencia in July 2019 as reported by the Daily Mail.

Vidal, who has starred in more than 600 adult films, was arrested on Thursday after Abad died at his home in the Valencian town of Enguera.

Abad is believed to have been engaging in a mystic ritual when he inhaled vapour from the psychedelic toad.

According to the Spanish Civil Guard:

Officers began the investigation after the death of a person during a mystical ritual involving the inhalation of vapours from the venom of the Bufo alvarius toad. At the conclusion of an 11-month investigation, we have been able to establish that an offence of involuntary manslaughter and a public health offence had occurred, allegedly committed by those who organised and presided over the ritual.

However, Vidal’s lawyer has denied the allegations. He said:

Nacho is very upset by the death of this person, but he considers himself to be innocent. With all due respect to the dead man and his family, Nacho maintains that the consumption [of the venom] was completely voluntary.

The toad is a rare species native to the Sonoran Desert from northern Mexico to California and Arizona, secretes venom containing a very powerful natural psychedelic substance known as 5-MeO-DMT.

The arrest of the porn star is not unrelated to a YouTube video in 2016 describing the healing effects of using the toad’s venom.

He was arrested with another man and a woman, aged between 37 and 50, all of the Spanish nationality according to the Daily Mail.