Police Warn Of Growing Practice Of Disguising Illicit Drugs As Brightly Colored Candy

A bag of individually wrapped "candies," including what appeared to be brightly wrapped lollipops, seized by police during a federal raid in Florida earlier in July was actually 10 pounds of illicit drugs — methamphetamine, to be precise.

Investigators from the federal Drug Enforcement Administration have arrested 24-year-old Florida resident Jorge Maldonado in connection with the drugs, which was traced to a home in Bradenton, Florida.

Authorities also arrested another local man, Jesus Casteyano, in connection with an even greater supply of meth, disguised as 19 pounds of candy. The drugs were found in a home shared by the man's wife and two young children, 1 and 6 years old.

Casteyano reportedly told investigators that he had disclosed the contents of the "candy" wrappers to his wife, and instructed her not to allow the children near the supply.

Law enforcement officials in South Florida have become increasingly aware of the manufacturing of drugs to resemble hard candies, a particularly dangerous strategy because of the potential for both children and adults to consume them unwittingly.