Warning over spice and ketamine-laced vapes being given to schoolchildren

Lancashire Police said they’re investigating the allegations (Picture: Getty)

Lancashire Police are investigating after a man allegedly handed out vapes ‘laced with spice and ketamine’ at schools.

The allegations surfaced after three students were reportedly hospitalised in Pendle Borough last week, with warnings being spread on social media.

In a statement, they said: ‘We are aware of a post circulating on social media around alleged drug-dealing.

‘We would like to reassure the public that we take all allegations of this nature seriously and we are looking into it.’

After the social media posts gained traction, Lancashire Police said they were made aware of criminal damage on a home nearby.

Spice is usually a mix of herbs or shredded plant material and man-made mind-altering chemicals sprayed onto them.

It is marketed as an alternative to cannabis by drug dealers but, chemically, the two drugs are very different.

Cannabis comes from a plant, but Spice is a ‘synthetic cannabinoid’, a family of around 700 research chemicals.

Vapes have been at the centre of spiking incidents before (Picture: Getty)

Ketamine, widely known as ket or K, is an anaesthetic that has become popular as a party drug in clubs and raves.

Typically snorted as a powder or injected as a liquid, it can distort the user’s perceptions of sight and sound, making them feel dissociated from their surroundings.

Vapes have been the latest target for spiking victims with drugs – with more than 6,700 cases reported in the first half of 2023 alone in England and Wales.

Helena Conibear, chief executive of the Alcohol Education Trust, said: ‘We have heard of people unknowingly using vapes which contain THC or spice in them.

‘Very little is known about vape spiking as it is a new phenomenon. We are very much in the dark about how it operates.’

Several victims of spiking spoke about their traumatic experiences last year, calling for further action.

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