Halloween gets do-over in Oakdale after tainted candy scare

Halloween is getting a do-over in Oakdale after a report of tainted candy caused many parents there to throw out their children’s collection from trick-or-treating.

A parent in the Burchell Hill neighborhood on Halloween night reported finding metal objects in candy collected by their children while trick-or-treating.

“The alerts and advisements regarding the incident prompted some to throw away trick-or-treat candy out of a valid abundance of caution,” reads a press release from the Oakdale Police Department.

So the department is hosting “Operation Halloween 2.0.”

The community is invited to go to the Police Department, at 245 N. Second Ave., on Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon to receive “free certified safe replacement candy treats.”

The event will include demonstrations of specialized equipment, and McGruff the Crime Dog will be there. Costumes are optional and highly encouraged.

“Rest assured our officers are working very hard to try and identify the source of the tampered candy,” Chief Scott Heller said in the press release. “Meanwhile, we thought it very important to also focus energy on those impacted by this terrible event and clearly demonstrate, in Oakdale, good ultimately prevails.”

Officers have analyzed evidence and contacted residents in the area where the tampered candy was reportedly discovered. They are working in partnership with the Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office.

There have been no additional incidents reported to police at this time.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 209-847-2231 or call Crime Stoppers at 209-521-4636. Callers to Crime Stoppers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a cash reward.

This story was originally published November 2, 2018 at 2:21 PM.