Students in Virginia treated gummy bears with fentanyl, 2 suspects arrested
Students in Virginia ate gummy bears with fentanyl, 2 suspects arrested (Getty Images)
Two people have been charged following an incident with seven elementary students in Virginia eating gummy bears from a plastic baggie, later found to be positive for the potentially lethal synthetic opioid fentanyl, CNN reports.
According to the Amherst County Public Schools, initially, the students experienced symptoms suggesting an allergic reaction to something they had consumed on Tuesday. Field testing of the bag by the sheriff’s office revealed a positive reaction for fentanyl.
“Preliminary investigation shows the students ingested gummy bears from a plastic baggie. In that baggie contained a residue, and the residue tested positive for fentanyl,” sheriff’s spokesperson Lt. Dallas Hill said.
Five of the affected students, all fourth-graders, were transported to a hospital, with symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, headache, and muscle spasms, Hill said. The students have since been discharged from the hospital.
According to ABC News, the bag was brought from home by a student. "At this point, we believe the bag containing the fentanyl got contaminated either at home or en route to school as the student was being transported by their caregiver to school," Amherst County Public Schools Superintendent William Wells said. "There's no indication of any other fentanyl at the school."
Who are the suspects
A male and a female have been apprehended in relation to the incident, as confirmed by Hill.
Clifford Dugan and Nicole Sanders (CNN)
Clifford Dugan faces charges of contributing to the delinquency/abuse of a minor and being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm. He is currently held without bond.
Nicole Sanders is charged with possession of Schedule I or Schedule II drugs and contributing to the delinquency/abuse of a minor. She is being held on a $2,500 bond.
Synthetic opioids in the U.S.
The incident highlights the pervasive issue of synthetic opioids, particularly fentanyl, driving overdose deaths in the United States, as indicated by a nearly 7.5-fold increase between 2015 and 2021, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Overdoses and poisoning rank as the third leading cause of death among children and adolescents aged 19 and younger.
