10 citizen complaints of numbness, rashes
By Scott Bellile
A Tootsie Roll will be sent to the Wisconsin State Crime Laboratory for testing after attendees at last weekend’s New Dublin Grand Parade told police they experienced rashes or numbness from eating candy they received there.
“We’re up to about 10 complainants,” New London Police Chief Jeff Schlueter told the Press Star Monday, March 19. “We’re still unsure what’s causing it. We’re not sure if it’s related to the candy or not and we’re currently … in contact with the state crime lab.”
It is too early for the New London Police Department to confirm whether the candy given out at the parade Saturday, March 17, was tainted, according to Schlueter.
The Tootsie Roll that will be sent to the crime lab was provided by a complainant who claimed it caused numbness or a rash, Schlueter stated in a news release Monday, March 19.
NLPD advised the public to throw out any candy they received at the parade or turn it in to NLPD after attendees reported on social media theirs was possibly tainted.
Anyone who felt “unusual symptoms” after eating candy from the parade is asked to call NLPD at 920-982-8505.
Schlueter first announced Sunday, March 18, that NLPD received one report of a person experiencing redness and numbness on their face after eating a Tootsie Roll from the parade. The person reported an orange tint to the Tootsie Roll.
What may have been the first Facebook post from a parade attendee to announce a reaction to the candy was shared more than 3,300 times as of mid-day Monday, March 19.
The post, made by a mother of three boys, provided pictures of three children with flushed cheeks and stated they suffered from rashes and swelling after eating the candy.
In a response to another poster’s question, the woman acknowledged it was possible two of the three children pictured had sunburned cheeks, but she said the third was not at the parade.
The Press Star via Facebook Messenger asked the woman for an interview and permission to use her name but has not yet heard back.
Another post by a Facebook user whose name was obscured showed a chewed up Tootsie Roll inside a bag containing scattered red blotches. The post stated that a friend bit into a Tootsie Roll that tasted sour and had an orange tint to it. She reported finding “little beads” inside the candy after spitting it out and stated she felt numb in the face afterward.
The Press Star left a message with Tootsie Roll Inc. asking if there have been any reports of unusual reactions to its candy elsewhere and if there could be other explanations to the orange tint or the consumers’ reactions. The company has not yet responded.