One of two men linked to a home suspected of distributing psilocybin gummies, also known as “magic mushrooms,” to at least 15 trick-or-treating children in Ocean Beach on Halloween night denied he gave drugs to kids in court Friday.
Shawn Michael Foster, 45, pleaded not guilty Friday to charges of transporting controlled substances to a minor and two firearms-related charges.
He denied in court allegations he was responsible for leaving multiple bags of psilocybin-infused gummies at his home on the 2100 block of Sunset Cliffs Boulevard on Halloween night. The bags left out on Halloween were then taken by at least 15 children between 1 and 6 years old, San Diego police said.
Foster was arrested Wednesday alongside co-defendant Michael Goff, 80, who has not yet been arraigned. A judge released Foster on bail with supervision and ordered him stay away from any minors and stay within San Diego County. He was also warned not to use any drugs or drug paraphernalia.
San Diego police were first called by the children’s parents on Halloween night, who noticed the suspicious candy packages and, upon inspecting them, suspected they contained controlled substances, the department said.
An investigation was launched and a search warrant served on the Ocean Beach home turned up an identical bag of psilocybin gummies to those distributed on Halloween during their search, San Diego police said.
Investigators said they also found more than 2.5 pounds of cannabis, 25 grams of crystal methamphetamine, a working digital scale, packaging materials and drug sales ledgers. An illegally possessed rifle was also located along with dozens of rounds of unfired ammunition and a partially assembled pistol.
Foster’s daughter, Devilyn Foster, said she believes her dad is being wrongly targeted.
“There’s people in the neighborhood who don’t like how the house appears, and think that it’s the ‘witch house’ or that something bad,” Devilyn Foster said. “So I am willing to bet that specific people have it out for them.”
Frank Cary and Cameron Hunter were trick-or-treating with their children and several neighborhood families Saturday night when they made the discovery their children had obtained illicit drugs, they told NBC San Diego on Monday.
Detectives seized over 2.5 pounds of cannabis, more than 25 grams of crystal methamphetamine, a working digital scale, packaging materials and drug sales ledgers. NBC 7’s Dana Williams reports.
The parents said they were walking just a few yards behind their children when the kids approached a porch with a bowl of what appeared to be candy.
“My 2-year-old went up and grabbed one and started walking away with it in his hand,” Cary told NBC 7. “I noticed the picture had a giraffe and words that looked like they were melting. I took it out of his hand and saw that there was a dosage on the front of it. Five grams, [then I ] flipped it around and read ‘psilocybin mushrooms.’”
The parents then confronted the homeowners and later filed a police report with the department, saving the packages of the gummies for law enforcement evaluation, which later tested positive for psilocybin.
NBC San Diego spoke to Foster before his arrest and he also disputed the parents’ account of the situation then. He said his wife had been confused when strangers came to their door and confronted her about the packages.
Foster is next scheduled to appear in court on Nov. 17.