Police warn of the dangers of "edibles" after four children taken to hospital

Surrey Police is asking parents in Epsom to urgently speak to their children about the dangers of "edibles" after two 12-year-olds (one boy, one girl) and a 13-year-old boy were taken to hospital after suffering a violent reaction from eating jelly sweets that they believed contained cannabis.

A fourth 12-year-old boy has been taken to hospital by his family as a precaution, as he is also believed to have eaten the sweets.

We were called at 2.15 today (1 May) by the South East Coast Ambulance service to the parade of shops on Pound Lane. Epsom, close to Court Recreation Ground, where three children were vomiting uncontrollably and falling in and out of consciousness. They were taken to hospital by ambulance, and all four children will remain in hospital overnight for observation.

At the moment we do not have a clear description of the sweets involved, however we have had a similar report from last night in the local area involving "jelly apple rings" which appear as green jelly circles. The individual in that incident was thankfully less affected. 

There is a suggestion that the sweets may have been supplied to the children at the Court Recreation Ground.

Detective Sergeant Lee Marks said: "We are, of course, trying to understand what these sweets are, where they came from and what they contain. However, our immediate priority is to warn parents; and to tell children in the area not to be tempted to try them as they are obviously causing substantial harm.

“These types of products, which may be marketed as ‘cannabis infused’ or ‘THC infused’ are illegal, and therefore unregulated, in the UK. They can appear to be commercial products with professional packaging, but this should not be taken as a sign that they are safe or legal."

Anyone who is concerned about the health of someone that they believe may have taken these products is asked to call NHS 111 (999 in an emergency).

If you have information about the supply of these sweets in the Epsom Area, or if you have found similar sweets or related packaging in the area local to Court Recreation Ground, please do not destroy them, but contact Surrey Police via the online chat on our website (www.surrey.police.uk) quoting reference PR/P21090934. You can also call Surrey Police on 101. In an emergency, always call 999.

NOTE. 08:11 on 2/5/2021.
The quote in this story has been updated to read "THC infused" instead of "CBD infused". While CBD products are legal as long as they contain not THC, they should not be sold or used by under 18s. Products containing THC are illegal. We apologise for any confusion this caused.