A New Zealand food bank that works with homeless people has been found to be handing out lollipops containing “life-threatening levels” of methamphetamine.
In a press release issued through the Auckland City Mission on Tuesday, the charity said the lollipops containing the illegal drug were donated through an “unknown member of the public. “
The pineapple-flavored lollipops with the Rinda logo arrived here in a “sealed retail-size package,” which also bore the logo, according to city missionary Helen Robinson.
Another 400 people were contacted to identify infected lollipops, and eight families, plus at least one child, reported eating infected lollipops on Tuesday.
“We received an alert of concern by a food parcel recipient who said they had ‘funny tasting’ lollies,” the statement read.
“As a protective measure, the lollipops that are still in place have been tested through the NZ Drug Foundation. Tests showed that the lollipops tested contained life-threatening grades of methamphetamine.
“To say we are devastated is an understatement. “
Thankfully, no one was hospitalized because the “disgusting” taste caused other people to spit out the infected candy.
New Zealand police have opened a criminal investigation into the origins and Americans of those drug-filled lollipops.
The New Zealand Drug Foundation tested the lollipops and found that they contained 3g of methamphetamine, which is three hundred times the average fatal dose – between 10 and 25mg.
The deputy director of the New Zealand Drug Foundation, Ben Birks Ang, said that concealing illegal drugs is not an unusual and foreign practice to conceal illicit substances.
Ang suggested that other people involved would have possibly fed on anything containing methamphetamine to call 911 immediately.
Symptoms come with chest pain, immediate central frequency, delirium, seizures, hypothermia, and loss of consciousness.
“Ultimately, the police will investigate and it’s up to them to decide. I note that ingredient leakage, like anything else that can be smuggled into the domain, is not unusual and would be worth a huge sum of money. So our assumption right now is that this is unlikely to be intentional,” Ang said.
Each pallet is said to have a market of around NZ$1,000 (AU$916).
Drug Foundation executive director Sarah Helm urged people to oppose eating candy with the Rinda logo because the extent of the contamination is uncertain.