NY police investigating pill hidden in Halloween candy

One day after Joann Turner found a pill hidden inside candy her daughter received trick-or-treating at the Poughkeepsie Galleria,police continued their investigation, the Poughkeepsie Journal reported, adding that Turner’s 13-year-old daughter found a Snickers bar that was already opened, which the mother alleges to have contained a pill.

“It was separated at the ends. It looked like it was carefully opened and slipped back in. The ends had been sliced with something like a razor or a knife,” said Turner in the Poughkeepsie Journal report.

When Turner pulled it apart, she found a pink pill inside, the report stated, adding that police took the pill for testing and are asking that all parents check their children’s candy for tampering before it is consumed.

According to Turner, mall officials told her the stores buy candy in bulk, and the tampering may have originated at one of the manufacturing facilities, the Hudson Valley News Network claimed in a related report, adding that Turner posted the incident on Facebook, eliciting close to 5,000 shares by Sunday night.

“I didn’t realize it was going to move across Facebook like this,” she said to the Hudson Valley News Network. “It was originally intended to be for my friends, but it’s gotten all over and I’m glad it did.”

The Galleria’s managementresponded to the incident in an emailed statement quoted by the Poughkeepsie Journal: “[The] Poughkeepsie Galleria has hosted our annual Malloween event for years to provide a fun and safe place for the community to enjoy Halloween. We are working closely with the tenants and Town of Poughkeepsie police and continue to encourage everyone to always check their candy from every source — grocery, party, trick-or-treating, etc.”

“I couldn’t believe it happened in my backyard,” Turner said to the Journal. “I am really shocked. Luckily, my paranoia caused my daughter to question why the package was opened.”