A Philadelphia man is accused of using Instagram to advertise and sell THC-laced cereal snacks directly to children and teens throughout Montgomery County.
Quashon Rice, 20, was arrested and charged with solicitation of minors to traffic drugs, possession with intent to deliver and other related offenses.
The investigation began on May 10 when a police resource officer responded to the East Norriton Middle School cafeteria. Officials believed a sick student at the school had been given an edible marijuana snack without his knowledge.
Get Philly local news, weather forecasts, sports and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC Philadelphia newsletters.
The student told officials he had eaten a rainbow-colored Rice Krispy treat that had been given to him by another student. Investigators determined the second student was selling drug-laced edibles they had bought from the Instagram account “top2treats.” The purchased treats had been delivered to that student’s home, a local park or in the neighborhood after the student paid for them in cash.
Through a search warrant, investigators determined Rice was the person behind the “top2treats” account. Rice allegedly communicated with the student dealer and several other children. Rice quoted specific prices and delivery fees, investigators said. He also allegedly sold a variety of edible THC products, including Fruity Pebbles bars, cookies, brownies and Cinnamon Toast Crunch bars.
After Instagram disabled the “top2treats” account, Rice created a new account called, “toptreatz4,” investigators said. Rice sold the edibles to teens and children as young as 11 at public middle schools, high schools, public parks, a trampoline park, and homes throughout Montgomery County, including Ambler, Bala Cynwyd, Bridgeport, Cheltenham, King of Prussia, Norristown and Willow Grove, according to officials.
Local
Breaking news and the stories that matter to your neighborhood.
Rice also allegedly solicited some of the children to help him sell the edibles and even asked buyers to repost and tag his Instagram sales post advertising his products in exchange for a discount.
Rice was arrested in Philadelphia on Tuesday. Officials said they also recovered a ghost gun, materials Rice used to make the edibles, around 40 individually packaged homemade edibles and around 10 bags of marijuana.
“This defendant was targeting children as young as 11 years old to sell his drugs to, imbedding drugs in cereals and snack products that appeal to children. He then sold them where children are—on social media, specifically Instagram, where he would show the product as well as provide step-by-step instructions for how the kids could order the edibles and have them delivered,” Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele. “This defendant’s illegal drug trafficking business supplying drugs to children and encouraging children to be drug dealers is an egregious case. We will be seeking a long state prison sentence so that he will be in a place where he won’t be able to harm any more children.”
Rice was arraigned and remanded to the Montgomery County Correctional Facility after failing to post bail that was set at $95,000 cash. He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on June 27.
