Family eats LSD-tainted meat : medical examiner

A Florida family is home recovering after eating meat laced with LSD.

The meat was bought at a Tampa area Walmart last week.

Police say a pregnant woman, her boyfriend, and two daughters ate the steak for dinner on Monday night and began to feel ill.

After consuming bottom round steak at dinner Monday evening, Ronnie Morales, 24, became seriously ill and was driven to a Tampa hospital by his girlfriend Jessica Rosado, who was nine months pregnant.

When the couple arrived at the hospital, Rosado, 31, “also became ill and was rushed across the street to St. Joseph’s Women’s Hospital where they induced labor,” according to a police statement. Shortly thereafter, Rosado’s two young daughters “started experiencing hallucinations and felt ill,” cops added.

Morales and the girls “received tracheal intubation and were hospitalized” until their release Wednesday, while “The mother and her healthy baby boy were released Thursday, March 6th,” police reported.

The family members suffered hallucinations, dizziness, rapid heart rates, and difficulty breathing, according to Tampa Police Chief Jane Castor, who said that there was “no indication” of any involvement on the part of Morales or Rosado in the meat tampering. Castor added that there was, “No criminal history with this family.”

After seizing “food items that the family consumed prior to falling ill,” investigators determined that they “consumed bottom round steak contaminated with LSD.” Walmart has turned over to police “all meat of that type that was on their shelves at that time” so that it can be tested.

Terming the matter an “isolated incident,” cops are now attempting to determine when and where the meat was contaminated with LSD. Castor said investigators were not aware of the concentration level of the hallucinogen, which is often sold in liquid form.

Agencies/Canadajournal