Yes, A Kinder Surprise Probably Contained Crystal Meth, No, It Wasn’t Purchased From A Store, Druggies Hid It In A Bush

A Kinder Surprise egg was found by a child. Upon opening the chocolate, a baggie of crystal meth was found instead of the usual treat relevant for children. At first glance, this story about the crystal meth laden Kinder Surprise sounds horrifying, scandalous even. After all, how does crystal meth even get through the quality control department at Kinder Surprise? But, it turns out, the devil really is in the detail with this story.

The initial report about the crystal meth Kinder Surprise came from Inspector Colin Shaw on the PSNI Limavady Facebook page. The inspector stated, “The contents of the bag, which was found inside a toy egg, is believed to be meth amphetamine. This small quantity of drugs will be disposed of by police.”

It was reported this Kinder Surprise was found inside a bush by a small child. So already, it seems this treat had been previously purchased from a shop. The likelihood of the Kinder Surprise being tampered with between the original purchase and it being deposited inside a bush suddenly seems more plausible. While it is possible the treat could have been purchased and accidentally dropped, considering this appears to be the first time a Kinder Surprise has contained crystal meth, an “accidental drop” seems less likely.

The inspector who first reported the supposed crystal meth Kinder Surprise made mention of the problems associated with drug use, and perhaps this is why many people have made the assumption the Kinder Surprise was somehow manufactured with the suspected crystal meth inside it. But some pointers in the original press release show that the Kinder Surprise found had been tampered with. Inspector Colin Shaw stated “the possibility that something so potentially dangerous has been discarded where children could find it is deeply concerning,” a definite indicator that the assumption was the item had been tampered with. He then concluded his statement.

“I don’t want members of the local community to find drugs on their street, however this incident just reminds us that criminals have no regard whatsoever for the safety of local residents, and I am thankful that this child had the sense to speak to an adult about what he discovered.”

So what actually happened?

What we definitely know about the supposed crystal meth Kinder Surprise is that on Sunday, May 29, the object was handed to police by “a member of the public.” This item came into their possession after a “young boy” found the Kinder Surprise in the Drumachose area of Limavady in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. This Kinder Surprise contained a substance that may be a drug such as crystal meth but hasn’t been confirmed as such by authorities.

According to a follow-up report by the Belfast Telegraph, the “young boy” involved was 5-years-old and the “member of the public” was the child’s father. This news report states the child had been playing outside with his 8-year-old brother when he stumbled across the Kinder Surprise in a hedge. But, according to this report, it was not the entire Kinder Surprise they found, just the “yellow plastic shell, that usually contains a toy.”

Limavady DUP councilor, Alan Robinson, said he had been contacted by the child’s uncle to say the suspect Kinder Surprise had been found “in the Edenmore Road area of Limavady.” Alan Robinson went on to state the community was very lucky the children had handed what they had found to their father, otherwise the story could have had a very tragic ending. “Our children are precious and they should not be exposed to such danger,” he concluded.

So we know that the yellow interior of a Kinder Surprise was found, not the entire product. Inside this container was a baggie of a substance that may have been crystal meth. The likely assumption it seems the police are making on this matter is not that the quality control at Kinder Surprise has dropped but that, a drug user or drug dealer has stashed their drugs within the middle compartment of a Kinder Surprise and then hidden it in a bush. This could have been an informed decision, ie. a deal was about to take place, or the drug user had hidden it there rather than be found with the substance on their person. It could have also have been a rash decision that occurred if a user or dealer thought they might be busted with the substance in their possession.

Inspector Colin Shaw concluded with the following statement.

“I would ask everyone in the local community to help us and if you have information about the sale or misuse of illegal drugs, please contact us… It is only with your assistance and information that we can identify offenders and bring them to justice.”

[Image via Andrey Lobachev/Shutterstock.com]