Conestoga students fall ill from pot-laced food, 2 charged

TREDYFFRIN TWP., Pa. - May 21, 2012 (WPVI) -- Two people have been arrested after several students fell ill at Conestoga High School after eating marijuana-laced brownies, police said.

Justin Mendenhall, 19, of the 200 block of Edinburgh Rd. in Exton and Katelyn Anne Jennings, 20, of the 1700 block of Burgoyne Court in Wayne were arrested on Friday.

The investigation began on Thursday when Tredyffrin Twp. Police responded to Conestoga High School for a numbers of students sickened from eating the marijuana-laced brownies.

"Three students from the high school reported that they were not feeling well. They came to the guidance counselor and the nurse and explained to them what they took, what they ate," said Cpl. Ryan Scott of the Tredyffrin Twp. Police.

Police say their investigation revealed that Mendenhall had allegedly made the brownies laced and sold them to students.*

Police say they also learned that Mendenhall sold marijuana to students several times in the past.

Investigators say they obtained Mendenhall's phone number from the buyer and set up an undercover meeting at the Daylesford Train Station at 8:00 p.m. on Friday.

At that meeting, police said, they found Mendenhall and Jennings in a car, who allegedly had a bag of marijuana in plain view. Both were arrested and charged with Possession with Intent to Deliver a Controlled Substance ( Felony), Possession of a Controlled or Counterfeit Substance (Misdemeanor), Criminal Conspiracy (Felony), Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and Criminal Use of a Communications Facility (Felony).

Both are free on bail pending a preliminary hearing, scheduled for Wednesday.

All of the students who fell ill have recovered and police say they cannot be charged because they ate the evidence.

School administrators had no comment for this story.

Last month, the school was on lockdown while police dogs searched lockers and backpacks for drugs. Police say it was a routine sweep, and they didn't find any drugs.

They just hope, after this incident, that the kids are more careful about what they ingest. The brownies obviously weren't made by a trusted source.

"Who know what's in that brownie, so they're putting something in their body that could potentially harm them or kill them," said Cpl. Scott.

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*Earlier Monday, the Tredyffrin Twp. Police Department said Mendenhall sold the marijuana to a student who, in turn, made the brownies. They corrected their alleged timeline of events later in the day.

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