Victorian man Riki Stephens dies after taking drugs on the Gold Coast

A Victorian man has died in hospital less than a week after slipping into a coma after taking a mystery drug.

Riki Stephens was one of 16 people hospitalised on the Gold Coast over the weekend after taking a substance that turned out to be a cocktail of ‘amphetamine-like substances.’

He’d been on an end of season footy trip with his Heathcote Saints teammates. 

Senior Coach Paul Kennedy told 3AW everyone at the club was shattered.

‘We’re totally devastated,’ he said.

‘We’ve got a real heavy heart, at the moment.

‘I can’t believe what the family would be going through.’

Family and friends have flooded Stephens’ Facebook page with tributes, remembering him as a ‘fun-loving guy’ who had time for everyone.