COCONUT CREEK, Fla. – Two teenagers were treated by paramedics after ingesting marijuana-laced gummy candies at their Coconut Creek school Tuesday. Now a woman and two teens, including the 14-year-old girl who sold them the drug-laced treats, have been arrested, police said.
Sgt. Brandi DelVecchio said a 15-year-old girl went to the clinic at Lyons Creek Middle School, because she wasn't feeling well. Upon investigating, police learned that the girl had eaten a gummy candy containing marijuana.
DelVecchio said a 14-year-old girl gave the gummy candies to two students who ate them. DelVecchio said more drug-laced candies that the girl intended to sell were seized by police.
The 14-year-old girl and a 13-year-old girl were arrested. DelVecchio said Christine Arguelles was also arrested.
Arguelles faces charges of possession with intent to sell THC, two counts of child neglect and three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. She is the mother of one of the children.
"I think it's mind-boggling that a parent would put her child in that predicament," parent Sandy Sharkey told Local 10 News reporter Derek Shore.
According to an arrest warrant, police searched Arguelles' home and found 86 more packages of the same type of gummy candies in her refrigerator.
"Look what you did," Arguelles told her daughter, according to the warrant. "You brought these cops into my house. You thought you were going to make some money?"
Arguelles told her daughter if she wanted money that she should have gotten a job at Publix, the warrant said.
Both students who ate the gummy candies were treated by paramedics at the school. The 15-year-old girl was taken to a hospital and later released.
DelVecchio said the parents of all students were notified.
"Parents are encouraged to discuss with their child the danger of these items, which are disguised as candy, and the importance of making good decisions," Broward County Public Schools spokeswoman Tracy Clark said.
The names of the students involved haven't been released because of their ages.