Eleven teenagers were rushed to the hospital after ingesting gummy bears that were laced with the drug THC, a mind altering ingredient found in marijuana.
According to WXIN-TV, the incident happened on July 6 in Fishers, Indiana.
Police in LaPorte received a 911 call that stated a 19-year-old became sick after he ingested the bear laced with THC.
Ten other officers were dispatched to the location where they found 10 additional teens who complained of symptoms such as “rapid heart rate, pain in their legs, blurred vision, and hallucinations.”
Those teens – six men and five women – were between the ages of 18 and 19.
Indianapolis Patch reported that each teen had one half of a gummy bear.
Captain Kellems told WLS-TV that although the teens only appeared to ingest a small amount of the drug, their physical effects proved otherwise.
“The strength is so strong that it caused an adverse reaction in 11 people – not one person, not three – it wasn’t just a small batch or a bad batch,” he stated.
“You know when you put a can of Coke in front of me and I know I’m going to drink 16 ounces of Coca Cola, you know what’s in it. When you take something that is made and manufactured in a state that unfortunately allows this type of thing, you don’t know what you’re getting,” said Capt. Kellems.
Police asserted that the drug laced candy were probably shipped from a state where marijuana is legal.
Parents are now on the lookout for what their kids are eating and where it comes from.
“I have kids myself so I would be concerned a kid brings it to school, I mean it looks like gummy bears,” said parent Stacey Hastis.
Perhaps the most scary part of the whole ordeal: police still do not know where the teens got the candy.
Something must be done to protect and educate children and teens about the dangers of drugs.
(via: Conservative Tribune)