Report: Portsmouth child’s Halloween candy contained sewing needle

Posted 11/17/16

PORTSMOUTH — Someone reportedly played a mean trick on a local child who went door-to-door for Halloween candy Oct. 31. Police are investigating a report that the child received a piece of candy that contained a sewing needle inside.

This item is available in full to subscribers.

Please log in to continue

Log in

Register to post events


If you'd like to post an event to our calendar, you can create a free account by clicking here.

Note that free accounts do not have access to our subscriber-only content.

Day pass subscribers

Are you a day pass subscriber who needs to log in? Click here to continue.


Report: Portsmouth child’s Halloween candy contained sewing needle

Posted

PORTSMOUTH — Someone reportedly played a mean trick on a local child who went door-to-door for Halloween candy Oct. 31.

Police are investigating a report that the child received a piece of candy that contained a sewing needle inside.

Police said they were notified of the contamination today, Nov. 17, according to a press release sent out by Deputy Police Chief Brian Peters. 

“The candy was a .55 (ounce) AirHeads bar which contained a sewing needle approximately 2 inches in length,” Deputy Peters stated.

The needle was found inside the candy itself, he stated in a follow-up e-mail. “The child was not hurt and discovered it when handling the candy,” Deputy Peters said.

The child had gone trick-or-treating on the east side of East Main Road — in the vicinity of Sea Meadow Drive, Lepes Road and Ethel Drive — and also attended another trick-or-treating event in the St. Barnabus Church parking lot.

“The source of the candy remains under investigation,” he stated.

Police urged parents to inspect all Halloween candy their children collected this year.

“Out of an abundance of caution we are encouraging all parents to thoroughly double-check all their remaining candy that their children received,” Deputy Peters stated in the press release.

Fact or myth?

If police are able to substantiate the complaint, it would be a rare documented case of someone deliberately contaminating Halloween candy that could lead to a child’s injury or worse.

Although many stories of strangers intentionally lacing candy with poison or inserting sharp objects into them in order to hurt or kill a child have been frightening parents for decades, nearly all have been proven to be untrue and such anecdotes are now largely considered to be urban myths.

The only time a child died after ingesting contaminated Halloween candy was in 1974 in Deer Park, Texas. However, in that case it turned out that the 8-year-old boy’s own father had done the deed by lacing a Pixy Stix with cyanide in an attempt to claim life insurance money.

The father, Ronald Clark O’Bryan, also handed out poisoned candy to other children — none of them ate any of it — in an attempt to cover up his crime. He was convicted of murder and executed in 1984.

Portsmouth Police, Portsmouth Police Department, police news

2024 by East Bay Media Group

Barrington · Bristol · East Providence · Little Compton · Portsmouth · Tiverton · Warren · Westport
Meet our staff
MIKE REGO

Mike Rego has worked at East Bay Newspapers since 2001, helping the company launch The Westport Shorelines. He soon after became a Sports Editor, spending the next 10-plus years in that role before taking over as editor of The East Providence Post in February of 2012. To contact Mike about The Post or to submit information, suggest story ideas or photo opportunities, etc. in East Providence, email mrego@eastbaymediagroup.com.