Teen snorts rat poison, dies

A 16-year-old in Anderson died on Aug. 22 after snorting a white powder he and two friends had mistaken for cocaine.

On Aug. 28, Anderson Police announced that lab analysis identified the powder as strychnine, a pesticide used as rodent poison, according to the Redding Record Searchlight. A police press release noted that consuming the substance produces “dramatic and painful” symptoms.

The three teens obtained the poison from a friend who had found a vial of the white powder in his garage. After snorting the substance, two of the teens went into seizure and the third became seriously ill. One of the boys died within 30 minutes of ingestion. The two others, ages 16 and 13, survived after receiving treatment at a hospital.

A criminal investigation is ongoing, but no arrest has been made thus far.