East High student claims she was given fentanyl-laced candy on school bus

ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — A 14-year-old East High student suffered an overdose in class after she claims another student gave her a fentanyl-laced candy on the bus.

The 14-year-old student, Gabby Romo, said she had received snacks before from the same acquaintance who gave her the candy.

“He had got on the bus after me and he came to the back. He was like, ‘Well, I got some candy. Do y’all want some?’ I was like, ‘Sure.’ And then he gave me like three of them and he was passing them out to everybody else,” Gabby recalled.

It was soon after, in her first class, that Gabby said she started feeling the effects of the drug.

“It was about time for us [to leave], the bell was going to ring, and I’m sitting up, rocking back and forth, I’m seeing things, and then I just vomit everywhere,” she said. “I thought I was just gonna die or my heart was going to stop.”

Gabby said she was in and out of consciousness while she was being transported to UW SwedishAmerican.

Doctors said she suffered an “accidental fentanyl overdose.”

“Seeing the word overdose to me… I see ‘your child almost died,'” said Gabby’s mother, Jasmine Shearer.

Shearer said she hopes the scary situation can be used as a warning to others.

“Poisoning kids isn’t just happening at Halloween anymore. This is a year-round thing,” she said. “You have to check everything your kid has, screen who your kid was hanging out with, get to know who your kid is hanging out with. In the end of the day, my daughter didn’t really know this person by their first name. Nobody really knew this boy but by his first name. But because, you know, always passing out stuff, being friendly, they never saw it coming. She never saw it coming.”

One of Shearer’s friends posted about the incident on Facebook, prompting a response from Rockford Public Schools, which issued a statement, saying, “We are aware of a social media post alleging that multiple East HS students were impacted by an illegal substance shared on a school bus. We have been unable to substantiate the incident at this time. The Rockford Police Department is investigating.”

The Rockford Police Department confirmed an “active and ongoing investigation” is underway.

“I want answers. I want to know what consequences are happening. I want to know where this situation is leading,” Shearer said.