gettin2dizzy
11-03-08, 08:50 AM
*snigger* :lol:
Police have apologised after warning schools of the dangers of a non-existent drug, in an incident reminiscent of a TV spoof.
Thames Valley Police received an email warning about 'strawberry meth', a fruit-flavoured version of methamphetamine, reportedly being handed out to pupils outside school gates.
An officer forwarded the email to schools in west Oxfordshire. Schools sent letters to parents and even held special assemblies warning of the danger of strawberry meth.
However, both the police and the schools were left red-faced after it emerged that no such drug exists, reports the Daily Telegraph.
It's reminiscent of a spoof by Channel 4 comedy Brass Eye about a drug called "Cake" which was purportedly sweeping the nation.
David Amess, Conservative MP for Basildon, even asked a question in Parliament on the topic, unaware that the drug was entirely fictional.
In response to the "strawberry meth" hoax, a spokesman for Thames Valley Police said: "We would like to apologise for any unnecessary concern that we may have caused to schools or parents by sending this warning out about a drug that proved to be a hoax."
The hoax, which has been circulating on the internet for some months, is believed to have originated in America before making its electronic way across the Atlantic.
Police have apologised after warning schools of the dangers of a non-existent drug, in an incident reminiscent of a TV spoof.
Thames Valley Police received an email warning about 'strawberry meth', a fruit-flavoured version of methamphetamine, reportedly being handed out to pupils outside school gates.
An officer forwarded the email to schools in west Oxfordshire. Schools sent letters to parents and even held special assemblies warning of the danger of strawberry meth.
However, both the police and the schools were left red-faced after it emerged that no such drug exists, reports the Daily Telegraph.
It's reminiscent of a spoof by Channel 4 comedy Brass Eye about a drug called "Cake" which was purportedly sweeping the nation.
David Amess, Conservative MP for Basildon, even asked a question in Parliament on the topic, unaware that the drug was entirely fictional.
In response to the "strawberry meth" hoax, a spokesman for Thames Valley Police said: "We would like to apologise for any unnecessary concern that we may have caused to schools or parents by sending this warning out about a drug that proved to be a hoax."
The hoax, which has been circulating on the internet for some months, is believed to have originated in America before making its electronic way across the Atlantic.