Cops probe reports of tainted candy, at least 1 false

At least one of the reports of tainted Halloween candy in the Philadelphia region this weekend has been determined to be false.

A man in Gloucester Township has been charged with making a false police report after allegedly faking the tampered candy bars. Meanwhile, police in other jurisdictions say they are continuing to investigate reports of needles and pins found in candy.

Gloucester Township police said 37-year-old Robert Ledrew reported that he found needles in four separate pieces of trick-or-treating candy.

Prior to calling police, he posted photos of one of the alleged needles on social media.

But investigators determined that Ledrew, of Hillcrest Avenue in Blackwood, made up the story and put the needles in the candy bars himself, police said.

He was charged with making a false report and released on a summons, officials said.

Several other departments in the area are also probing reports of tampered-with candy, as photos of possibly tainted sweets have gone viral online.

Woodbury Heights police say a caller reported finding a needle or pin in a Snickers bar but hadn't brought the candy to the department by Sunday evening.

A woman who said in a Facebook post that she made the Woodbury Heights phone report wrote that she was "shocked" by the discovery in her children's candy.

The post, with photos of a Snickers almond bar and pin, had been shared on the social media site about 4,000 times as of Monday morning.

Woodbury Heights police encouraged parents to check their kids' candy and said it wasn't known how the pin got there.

"As with other reports, it is unknown if the tampering was done at a home, at the factory, or somewhere in between," the department wrote in a Facebook post.

And in Chester County, authorities are investigating after sewing needles were found inside Twix bars given to four children. Another child reported finding a similar needle inside a Snickers bar.

Police were processing the candy and needles to try to recover fingerprints and DNA evidence.