ROCKY MOUNTAIN HOUSE – A suspicious substance discovered by concerned parents in their children's Halloween haul and subsequently handed over to police has following initial testing that indicated the possible presence of fentanyl been determined not to contain any controlled substances.
Mounties in the Rocky Mountain House jurisdiction had recently sent the suspect sample to the RCMP's lab following a “presumptive positive test” for fentanyl they had initially conducted after acquiring the opened candy package on Nov. 2.
"Despite the initial presumptive positive test for the presence of fentanyl, additional testing by the lab has not produced a positive test for a controlled substance,” reads part of an updated Nov. 17 RCMP press release issued earlier today.
Responding to follow-up questions during a phone interview, Cpl. Troy Savinkoff, RCMP media relations officer, said, “I don’t think we’re going to be doing any more testing, just because there needs to be an end. But we’re satisfied that it’s not a controlled substance.”
Although authorities have confidently determined there were no narcotics laced with the candy, precisely what the parents found in their child's Halloween haul remains uncertain, he said.
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“It’s still a bit of a mystery as to what the substance is,” the corporal told the Albertan. “It’s still a suspicious occurrence.”
After all, a candy package was opened up and something was placed inside, he said.
“It’s been difficult to narrow down (where the suspicious package might have come from),” he said. “It was a very active child on Halloween.”
Asked whether there were any other similar reports from that area on Halloween or in the days following, he said, “There weren’t. My understanding is there were other reports of occurrences across the province; nothing that culminated into any concern.”
That was largely a matter of responsible parents erring on the side of caution and reporting to their local detachments anything that seemed out of place, he said.
“Ultimately, there were no concerns reported to the police that were substantiated as something that was a potential threat to the community,” he said.
As of the time he was interviewed, Savinkoff said there was no one sought by police.
“I’m not aware of any suspects currently,” he said. “That’s something that (the investigators) are still having to look at, is has a criminal offence been committed at this point.”
For the time being, the file remains open with a lead investigator, he said.
Police initially issued an alert following the presumptive positive test result that could have been because of potential cross contamination with a lab worker who might have had trace amounts of the substance on their hands, he said.
“There’s a lot of possibilities there,” he said about what might have triggered the presumptive positive test result.
“So, just out of an abundance of caution, we wanted to make sure that the community was aware of the potential threat.”
With the lab being able to determine there were no controlled substances involved, both parents and police are breathing a bit easier, he said.
“Everybody is breathing a sigh of relief over that, and I’m happy to hear that,” he said, adding the ongoing investigation might yet hopefully be able to determine not only what the substance is but also how it ended up in the candy.
On Wednesday, Nov. 2, RCMP in Rocky Mountain House had responded to a report from a parent who expressed concerns upon discovering an opened package in their child’s pile of candy.
“Inside the package, they observed three pieces of a dark unknown substance,” reads a portion of an initial press release issued on Nov. 3.
Police described the substance as “rather obvious with no intent to camouflage it in the candy.”
As preliminary tests were unable to identify the substance, RCMP sent a sample for analysis.
Early results from tests conducted on the substance by members of the Alberta RCMP Forensic Identification Section indicate “a presumptive positive test for the presence of fentanyl,” police said in an update several hours later.
“The material is being sent urgently to the RCMP Laboratory where investigators will have further tests performed.”
Police called the situation concerning and are encouraging parents to take extra precautions checking all of the candy their children obtained on Halloween while the RCMP continues to investigate the circumstances behind the incident.
The candy in the case was obtained on Halloween in a large geographical area in Rocky Mountain House.
“Unsealed candy should be immediately disposed of,” police said.
Anyone who should find something suspicious in their children’s Halloween haul is also encouraged to contact either the Rocky Mountain House RCMP or their local department.
“Parents should report any tampering of candy to their local police.”
