Two girls, age 5 and 11, are hospitalized after eating candy spiked with THC that were accidentally distributed by a Utah church
- Five children ate THC-infused candy included in a food distribution made by the First Baptist Church of of Roy in Roy, Utah, Friday
- Two of the five, girls ages 5 and 11, were hospitalized after eating medicated ‘Nerd Ropes’, which had 400 milligrams of THC
- The father of the 5-year-old, who did not want himself or her identified, says she was placed in intensive care after eating the candy
- The treats originated from the Utah Food Bank, who with the police are now investigating to learn the source of the candy which went out in 63 food bags
Two young girls ate THC-infused candy and were hospitalized after they got the medicated treats from a Utah church food distribution.
The girls, ages 5 and 11, and three others ate medicated ‘Nerds Ropes’, which were given out in 63 food bags distributed Friday by the First Baptist Church of Roy, which had gotten the donations from the Utah Food Bank, police said.
The candy had 400 milligrams of THC, which is about 40 times a normal dosage for an adult who uses marijuana regularly, say authorities. The packaging on the candies even encourages people to ‘Tear & Share’.
Two young girls ate THC-infused Medicated Nerds Ropes and were hospitalized after they got the medicated treats from a Utah church food distribution. Pictured are the medicated ‘Nerds Ropes’, that were eaten the children, ages 5 and 11, as well as three others, police say
The First Baptist Church of Roy had gotten the donations from the Utah Food Bank, police said
The candy had 400 milligrams of THC, which is about 40 times a normal dosage for an adult who uses marijuana regularly, say authorities. The above chart describes the effect level of THC, depending on the dosage size
An investigation is now being conducted by the food bank and police to learn how the cannabis treats ended up among the donations, KUTV reports.
The father of the 5-year-old, who asked that he and his daughter not be identified, said his daughter is in the Intensive Care Unit at Children’s Primary Hospital.
He said his daughter was at her grandmother’s house, who had picked up the food donation earlier Friday when the child ate the THC-spiked nerds.
‘I’m heartbroken this happened when we were trying to offer help,’ says Roy Baptist Church head minister John Thomas, responding to the botched distribution.
It was the church’s first food distribution in weeks.
A statement from the food bank advises anyone who received the nerds to immediately contact the Roy police at (801) 629-8221 to have an officer come and retrieve the candies with ‘no questions asked.’
A statement from the Utah Food Bank (pictured) advises anyone who received the nerds to immediately contact the Roy police at (801) 629-8221 to have an officer come and retrieve the candies with ‘no questions asked’
Ginette Bott, president of the food bank said that ‘everyone involved is mortified.’
Donations come to the food bank from different sources. Bott says efforts are underway to track down how the nerds were accepted with other donations.
‘We’re using the information we have in our inventory system and reached out to carriers and will do everything possible to try to track down that specific location where it came from,’ she said.
Ginette Bott, president of the food bank said that ‘everyone involved is mortified’
Bott warned that charges may be filed against the source.
‘Any time any kind of a product like this comes into a food chain or food supply, this is a criminal offense,’ she explained.
‘This is something not to be taken lightly.’