Around 15 children aged between one and six received gummy candies containing the hallucinogenic substance psilocybin during Halloween celebrations in San Diego, California.
According to Newsweek, cited by Report, the incident occurred on October 31 in the Ocean Beach neighbourhood.
According to police, the children were collecting sweets with their parents while going door to door in the neighbourhood. Near one of the houses, they found bags of gummy candies whose packaging raised suspicions among the adults.
The parents contacted law enforcement and handed over one of the bags for testing. Laboratory analysis confirmed the presence of psilocybin, a hallucinogenic substance found in certain types of mushrooms.
Police have yet to determine whether any of the children actually consumed the candies.
As part of the investigation, officers searched the house near which the sweets had been found. They discovered similar packages of candy, more than one kilogram of cannabis, over 25 grams of methamphetamine, drug-packaging materials, as well as firearms and ammunition.
Two men, aged 80 and 45, were arrested on suspicion of illegal weapons possession. They have not yet been charged with distributing drug-laced candy.
The investigation into the incident is ongoing.