Parents jailed after Minnesota student brings drug-laced 'candy' to school, where many kids fall ill

Paul Walsh, The Minnesota Star Tribune on May 21, 2026

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Charges could come this week for Moorhead, Minnesota, parents whose child allegedly brought suspected recreational drugs from home to middle school, where several youngsters fell ill from what was described as candy.

The incident on Monday at Horizon Middle School East led to police searching the couple’s home the next day and arresting them.

The 40-year-old father and 43-year-old mother remain jailed on May 21 on suspicion of illegal drug possession. The Minnesota Star Tribune generally does not identify suspects before they are charged.

Horizon East Principal Spencer Stowers sent a message to families saying one of his students “allegedly shared candy with approximately 10 classmates. Shortly after consuming it, some students began feeling nauseous. … After being assessed by emergency medical personnel on-site, two students required transportation to a medical facility.”

Officials have released no further information about the conditions of any of the students.

According to a police statement:

A law enforcement search on Tuesday of the couple’s home in 1100 block of 10½ Street N. turned up “prohibited amounts of suspected THC products in the form of flower, cartridges and wax, along with psychedelic mushrooms and large amounts of cash.”

The parents were tracked down elsewhere in the city and arrested early on Wednesday.

Several children who live in the home have been referred to county social services officials for review of their short-term needs.

Police Chief Chris Helmick issued a statement that read, in part: “As a parent with children in [Moorhead schools], I understand and relate to the concerns being raised within our community. … We also strongly encourage parents and guardians of children of all ages to speak with their kids about the importance of not consuming candy, food, or other items when they do not know exactly what they are.”

The father’s criminal history in Minnesota includes five convictions for theft, four for drug offenses, and one each for drunken driving, receiving stolen property and fleeing police. In neighboring North Dakota, he has more than a dozen drug-related convictions on his record along with at least eight for theft, three for assault and two for drunken driving.

Public court records in both states show no criminal history for the mother.

In March, a Wright County mother was sentenced to jail after admitting her 6-year-old daughter took her chocolate bar laced with hallucinogenic mushrooms to school and overdosed with a fellow student. Cassie Rae Tauriainen, 40, of Buffalo pleaded guilty to fifth-degree drug possession after her daughter and a 5-year-old boy fell ill on Sept. 10, 2025, at Cokato Elementary School.

Judge Elizabeth Strand sentenced Tauriainen to 90 days in jail with credit for 37 days. Tauriainen also was put on supervised probation for five years.