New Zealand charity unwittingly hands out pineapple lollies laced with meth

A police investigation is underway after a charity unwittingly handed out lollies laced with enough meth to make each piece worth $1000.

Pineapple lollies handed out to families by a charity unknowingly contained potentially lethal amounts of methamphetamine, police say.

The charity Auckland City Mission in New Zealand, which distributed food parcels containing the sweets, raised the alarm when a recipient tried a lolly and reported it tasted “funny”.

The lollies were then found to each contain about 300 times the common recreational dose of meth.

Police are now investigating what is believed to be a drug smuggling operation gone wrong.

Auckland City Mission said the Rinda brand lollies, which were wrapped in branded packaging, had been donated by an unknown member of the public and then distributed in parcels.

Chief executive Helen Robinson said on Wednesday up to 400 people had been contacted by the charity as it sought to determine the extent of the distribution.

Eight families were affected so far, including a child who immediately spat out the lolly. No one has been reported to be ill after eating the compromised confectionary.

Each lolly contained enough meth to be worth about $1000, the drug foundation said. Picture: NZ Drug Foundation

“Of immediate concern is the safety of the people we help,” Ms Robinson said.

“To say we are devastated is an absolute understatement.”

Methamphetamine can cause chest pain, racing heart, seizures, delirium and loss of consciousness, the drug foundation warned.

Ms Robinson said the charity became aware of a problem when a person who received a food package reported the confectionary had an unusual taste.

A staff member who then tried a lolly agreed they “tasted bad” and “felt funny” afterwards.

The pineapple sweets were tested by the New Zealand Drug Foundation, which confirmed a large presence of methamphetamine – enough to make each lolly worth about $1000.

Police in New Zealand believe it was a drug smuggling operation gone wrong. Picture: NZ Drug Foundation

NZ Drug Foundation spokeswoman Sarah Helm said each pineapple lolly contained about 3g of meth.

“A common dose to swallow is between 10 to 25mg, so this contaminated lolly contained up to 300 doses,” Ms Helm said.

“Swallowing that much methamphetamine is extremely dangerous and could result in death.”

She encouraged people to avoid eating Rinda brand pineapple lollies.

Ms Helm told Radio New Zealand it was common for drug smugglers to hide illegal narcotics in foodstuff.

“We suspect somebody hasn’t intentionally sought to poison children. It will be up to police to determine,” she added.

The foundation said there was no fear of addiction from exposure to the laced lollies but they could be detrimental to people with a history of addiction.

Originally published as New Zealand charity unwittingly hands out pineapple lollies laced with meth