Exclusive: baby in restaurant drugs scare

KFC in Newbury investigates as parent claims daughter nearly swallowed cannabis found on baby changing facility

A NEWBURY mother has spoken of her horror at finding what she believed to be cannabis in her 17-month-old daughter's mouth after it had been left on the side of a baby changing facility in a local fast food restaurant.

Stacey Rush took her 17-month-old daughter, Lily, into the Wharf Road, Newbury, franchise of Kentucky Fried Chicken at about 11.45am on Friday.

The mother of two, who also has a four-year-old boy called Harvey, was changing Lily in the toilet when she noticed something in her daughter's mouth.

“At first I didn't know what it was,” she said. “When I realised it was cannabis I felt sick. It was all over the floor mixed with tobacco. What if she had swallowed it?

“The manager said it happens all the time and there was nothing he could do but if you knew someone was taking drugs in your toilet you'd do something about it.

“There was no apology. All they did is offer a fruit shoot to wash the cannabis out of her mouth.

“I won't go there again.”

Miss Rush, who lives near Newbury town centre, claimed yesterday (Wednesday) that she still had not received an apology from the company despite filing an offical complaint, although KFC has denied this.

KFC has said it is investigating the incident and is waiting for results to establish what the substance is.

A KFC spokesperson said: “We were shocked to hear of this incident, and have spoken with Miss Rush to apologise for her experience.

“We take hygiene very seriously in all of our stores, and our toilets are cleaned every half an hour.

“We are currently investigating the substance to determine what it was, and have reminded staff at our Newbury restaurant to be extra vigilant in the future.”

The fast food chain, which says it is considering compensating Miss Rush, said it had not yet informed the police but would do so if the substance is confirmed to be illegal.