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Marijuana found in 4-year-old's backpack in Niagara Falls

Posted at 2:55 PM, Nov 20, 2019
and last updated 2019-11-21 15:00:53-05

NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. (WKBW) — The superintendent of the Niagara Falls City School district Mark Laurrie confirms to 7 Eyewitness News that a small amount of marijuana was found in the backpack of a 4-year-old student at Cataract Elementary School Wednesday.

Laurrie says bags of students that age are routinely checked as teachers look for lunches or notes from parents and so forth, the marijuana was found during one of these routine checks.

It was packaged for retail sale and Laurrie says police believe it was sold in Canada.

Police released an update Thursday stating the marijuana was in a plastic baggie with the logo that said "Jokes Up V" and "powered by Runtz."

According to police, the packaging appears it may be used by a legal marijuana dispensary in Canada, it is currently being tested.

A detective met with the mother and grandmother of the 4-year-old student, after speaking with them the 58-year-old grandmother stated the marijuana belonged to her.

"The 58-year-old grandmother stated that the marijuana belonged to her and that it was inside the aforementioned package which was located in her purse," police said in a release. "She states that she suffers from various ailments that cause her pain and she occasionally smoke it to ease the pain rather than take 'addictive' pain killers that have been prescribed to her."

Police say the grandmother does not recall who gave her the marijuana.

No charges have been filed, police are waiting for the results of the test of the substance found.

Police say if the substance is marijuana the 58-year-old grandmother will face unlawful possession of marijuana and endangering the welfare of a child charges.