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Audrey Geiger | Feature | October
Poisoned candy is a myth with a rich history, with a nearly untraceable source. It could be a classic urban legend like The Car Door Hook or The Man In The Attic. But why is it that people can go to bed without having to check their attics for home invaders, but they draw the line at poisoned candy?
Some have linked it back to a 1964 case in which a woman named Helen Pfeil gave out dog treats, steel wool, and ant buttons wrapped in aluminium foil to trick or treaters who she deemed “too old to be trick-or-treating.”
Ant buttons, for those unaware, are small bottle cap shaped objects used to kill ants and cockroaches by leaving them out. It’s just potent poison. She maintained it was just a prank and was released after 60 days in a psychiatric hospital. Luckily, no one was hurt physically by this acute psychotic break.
Vintage Ant Buttons
Photo sourced from eBay listing
Fentanyl Resembling chalk candy
Photo sourced from DEA.gov
Another case that sparked outrage and infamy was the 1974 case of Ronald Clark O’Bryan, distastefully nicknamed “The Candy Man.” He took out multiple life insurance policies on both of his kids totalling 100k in the time leading up to Halloween. The morning of, he bought potassium cyanide. He gave out Pixy Sticks which had been very inconspicuously stapled shut to his two kids with massive life insurance policies and to the neighbor kids, so it didn’t seem like one offs tied to him.
Mysteriously, after O’Bryan’s son Timothy was coerced into eating one, he died, apparently in his father’s arms. The case was pretty open and shut with all the clear evidence and O’Bryan was obviously declared the perpetrator. The rest of the Pixy Sticks were found before they could hurt anyone else. The night he was executed, angered citizens stood outside of the penitentiary and chanted “Trick or treat!” They also poured candy on the anti-death penalty protesters.
After this case, there has yet to be an official reported crime of malicious candy tampering. There was a massive burst of worry regarding candy laced specifically with drugs, such as cannabis, meth amphetamine, or, of course, fentanyl, whether with malice or accidentally.
In New Zealand last year, methamphetamine disguised as candy was passed to over 300 families. The “candy” was donated to a charity and distributed during Halloween of 2024. Each wrapped serving of meth was about 300 times the amount it would take to kill someone. Luckily, not one hospitalization occurred because the children spat them out. Apparently, they didn’t like the taste of meth. Since each nugget was worth a little over 600 dollars USD, it was determined to have been an accident.
That brings up an important detail, however; no one would ever purposefully give out drugs to strangers for Halloween. Ask around, the average drug addict would never in a million years purposefully part with their substances just to hurt children.
Collage referring to laced candy
There was a scare a few years back regarding edibles disguised as candy. The average price of a Nerd Rope is about a dollar. A THC (Cannabis) laced Nerd Rope is 20 to 30 times that. Logically, a person who paid 30 dollars for a single edible would not give it away to children; and if they did, it certainly wasn’t an intentional poisoning.
There’s a couple other things to watch out for as well. Cannabis edibles often really don’t look medicated until you read the contents. If there’s anything candy should be checked for, it’s the THC content. There’s also razorblades in candy which have never been found and fentanyl that looks like little chalk candies. The latter is not a common thing by any means, but still not good news for kids who like chalk candy.
Overall, there is no evidence that random poisonings ever occur or have occurred over Halloween. The myth was perpetuated and, despite being repeatedly disproved, it still continues to be a fear. Checking candy is not going to hurt anyone, but there’s a better chance of being eaten by a shark than poisoned by candy.
Collage referencing 600 milligram edible nerd rope
Collage acting as title for this bubble
A full, dense, overly medicated edible can have life threatening effects on children. If a child has eaten, say, 100 milligrams or more, it may be the right move to call 911 and/or poison control. Doses of that size can lead to seizures, comas, and even blood pressure problems.
That said, a child having eaten a 5mg gummy bear or something along those lines will likely not remain physically sound. It would probably be best to follow the instructions of medical professionals and get the kid water, a blanket, and time to rest.
It’s still good to make sure they’re safe and ensure that this doesn’t happen again, however, as THC is very bad for developing child brains. Obviously. But generally, responding with logic over panic yields the best results.
There’s no harm in giving poison control a little ring, as they will likely have more streamlined advice, if one were so inclined to get some. Up to you!
About The Writer
About The Writer
Audrey Geiger is a senior writer on The Courier. Despite the aged nature of this writer, she is still full of the vigor of the average spring chicken. She hasn’t learned to write yet but hopes to one day, and even sees herself becoming literate in the future.
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