Mom claims son found painkiller mixed in Christmas parade candy

GASTON COUNTY, NC (WBTV) - A Gaston County mother says someone threw out more than just candy at the Belmont Christmas parade on Tuesday.

According to Tiesha Newsome, the family was having a great time at the parade until her 5-year old son found a strong painkiller mixed in with his bag of parade candy.

She told WBTV a hydrocodone painkiller pill, one pill, was mixed in with a bag of candy people were throwing out from floats.

"This is a pill in my son's candy. I feel bad, because Halloween time, you check your kids candy. You think about it. You know what I mean," Newsome said. "It was a parade they were throwing the candy out. They were stuffing them in their pockets, I didn't think nothing of it."

She says she didn't the pill was there until her son asked her what it was from the backseat of their car on the way home.

"I want to believe it was someone's personal candy bag and they accidentally threw it out to my son," Newsome told WBTV. "Because there were older people in the parade. I would hope, that's what it was."

Tiesha Newsome told WBTV that she didn't file a police report because she says she want to believe this pill getting in her son's hands was truly accidental.

But she does want to make this a reminder to all parents - check the candy kids get in holiday parades.

"I want other people to know it don't matter if it's a Christmas parade, Thanksgiving Parade, always check your kids candy. Period. Point blank," Newsome said. "Never think you're being crazy. Check it."