Students sickened by drug-laced gummies

Four Coconut Creek middle school students were sickened by candies laced with THC, a chemical derived from marijuana, investigators said Thursday.

Police and paramedics were called Tuesday to Lyons Creek Middle School, where a 15-year-old girl was feeling nauseous, acting aggressively toward teachers and fading in and out of consciousness, court records said.

The teen told police she’d eaten two gummies laced with THC (tetrahydrocannabinols) before feeling unwell. The drug is not legal in Florida.

Margate-Coconut Creek Fire Rescue took her and another student to Northwest Medical Center for treatment, police said.

“Within the past several years, the potency of THC has increased tremendously,” said U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent Anne-Judith Lambert. “Putting it into edibles is dangerous because it alters the state of mind, especially when packaged as lollipops or other shapes that may appeal to children.”

Two other children said they felt ill after eating the candies shaped like hearts and gingerbread men, police said. Paramedics treated them at the school, at 4333 Sol Press Blvd., west of Florida’s Turnpike.

Coconut Creek police took two students into custody. A 13-year-old was arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to sell after being found with five foil packages with a set of gummies in each, police say. The teen was released to the custody of a parent, police said.

A 14-year-old also was accused of the same offense and of selling THC within 1,000 feet of a school. That student had a half-dozen sealed packs of gummies in a backpack and was taken to a juvenile detention center, according to a police report.

The Sun Sentinel is not naming the teenagers because they are minors.

Also arrested was Christine Lidia Arguelles on suspicion of possessing THC with intent to sell/manufacture/deliver; two counts of child neglect without great bodily harm and three counts of contributing to the delinquency or dependency of a child.

Arguelles, 33, of Coconut Creek, was taken into custody Wednesday and is being held in a Broward County jail on a $117,500 bond. According to an arrest report, her home refrigerator held 86 packs of gummies.

The Broward County school district said it made sure the affected students received immediate medical attention and their parents were notified. Officials said they are working with police and their own investigators on the case, and that students who have such items will be disciplined.

Coconut Creek Police said parents or children seeking more information can call the department at 954-973-6700.