April 26, 2023
Thom Carroll/for PhillyVoice
A group of middle school students at Crossroads Accelerated Academy in West Philly became sick after drinking juice suspected of being laced with an opioid, police say. Five were taken to CHOP for treatment.
A group of Crossroads Accelerated Academy students became sick after drinking juice that was laced with a suspected opioid Wednesday.
The middle school in West Philadelphia was placed on lockdown at 12:16 p.m. after 11 students, ages 14-16, drank the juice, police said.
After drinking the juice, the students began to feel lightheaded and threw up, according to the School District of Philadelphia. Five students were taken to the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia for treatment; six others were picked up by their parents.
"We take situations like this very seriously as they have the potential to compromise the safe and appropriate learning environment we strive to provide to our students every day," the district said in a statement. "Per the School District of Philadelphia Code of Conduct, alcohol and/or drugs are prohibited from being on school property. We encourage families to speak to their children about the dangers of drug use and consuming an unknown substance and have resources available if guardians need additional support."
The police and school district are working together to investigate the incident and determine the person responsible for bringing the juice into the school.
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available
