A Tampa woman known as the “candy lady” was arrested for selling “drug-infused” sweets and snacks to children, The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) announced on Dec. 15.
Renee Stephens, 32, was sent to Hillsborough County Jail on Dec. 13 with a bond set at $92,000, the FDLE said. She was charged with trafficking in Fentanyl, possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell, possession of cannabis, unlawful use of a two-way communication device, and maintaining a dwelling to traffic narcotics with minors present.
The case will be prosecuted by Attorney General Ashley Moody’s Office of Statewide Prosecution.
“This defendant, known as the ‘Candy Lady,’ endangered Floridians, including children, by targeting and selling drug-infused candy, chips, and cereal,“ Ms. Moody said in FDLE’s press release. ”The Candy Lady conspired with a felon currently serving 20 years in prison on drug charges.
“In a law enforcement-controlled purchase, the woman even handed over fentanyl while holding her infant child. It is unconscionable that a mother would have this poison near her baby and sell it to others. I am thankful for our law enforcement partners for seizing the lethal amounts of fentanyl in this case, enough to kill nearly 80,000 people.”
Ms. Stephens’s arrest comes amid an investigation that began in August when FDLE said its Tampa Bay special agents received a tip about her drug trafficking activities.
By making controlled purchases, the department’s agents reported receiving 58 grams of fentanyl from her over the course of three months and witnessed her “handling fentanyl while holding her infant child.” That investigation is still ongoing.
The FDLE said agents conducted a search of Ms. Stephens’s home on Dec. 11 and seized 153 grams of fentanyl, 100 fentanyl pills, as well as marijuana. They also said they seized 63 individually packaged snacks containing marijuana made to resemble chips, candy, and cereal that would be familiar to a child, such as Oreo cookies, Cheetos, and Doritos.
Agents also discovered, during the investigation, that Ms. Stephens’s husband, Vincent E. Stephens, was working with her while serving time in a state prison for drug-related charges, the FDLE said. He now faces charges of conspiracy to traffic fentanyl and unlawful use of a two-way communication device.
This arrest comes amid Gov. Ron DeSantis’s push to crack down hard on fentanyl, which he calls the “single deadliest drug threat” to the nation.
On the campaign trail, he tells audiences that there have been tens of thousands of drug overdoses due to fentanyl, and shares the story of an infant who died after being accidentally exposed to the drug from an AirB&B carpet.
The Office of Statewide Prosecution tackles crimes that impact two or more judicial circuits. It boasts a conviction rate of 99 percent since 2019.
The Attorney General’s office did not respond to The Epoch Times’s request for comment in time for publication.
This arrest follows another recent incident when seven elementary school children in Virginia were hospitalized after eating gummy bears from a bag that once contained fentanyl.
