A mother has bid farewell to her 23-year-old daughter who died “after eating a cannabis gummy sweet”.
Damilola Grace Olakanmi, 23, bought the “gummies” with her 21-year-old friend via a messaging app on her phone and they were delivered to her home.
However, they both immediately fell ill at the home in South Park Drive, Ilford around 11.30pm on Tuesday, 29 March.
Ms Olakanmi’s mother Wunmi, 51 kept a vigil by her bedside as she fought for her life in an east London hospital, where she died on Saturday.
Justice campaigner and relative Richard Taylor, 75, consoled the law student’s distraught mother on Sunday.
He told the Evening Standard: “Wumi has lost her only child - she has nothing now.
“They had to hold her up because she broke down every time a friend came to the house to give support.
“It’s a tragic warning to all young people about how they live their lives. They should resist drugs.
“Damilola was a promising young woman who should be looking forward to her future and having children of her own. She was studying law.”
University of Hertfordshire business law undergraduate Ms Olakanmi was taken by air ambulance to Queen’s Hospital, Romford in a critical condition.
Doctors at the hospital later discharged Ms Olakanmi’s friend, a US student visiting the UK.
Leon Brown, 37, of South Norwood, was arrested in connection with the incident on Friday.
He was subsequently charged with possession with intent to supply Class B synthetic cannabinoid, being concerned in the supply of a synthetic cannabinoid, and possession with intent to supply a psychoactive substance.
Another family member told the Standard that Damilola was “very kind and loved looking after children”
“The family will never come to terms with this. We need to know what happened. We don’t want Damilola’s memory to be just like that. You want her to be remembered as the girl who asked everyone, ‘Are you okay and do you want anything?’” the family member known only as Dunni said.
Officers have issued a warning over the sweets and said a number have been recovered and are being tested.
The Metropolitan Police said the case may be linked to another incident in March where a woman was taken to hospital after eating a cannabis sweet in Tower Hamlets.
She has since been discharged but an inquiry is underway to establish whether they came from the same batch involved in Ms Olakanmi’s death.
Chief Superintendent Stuart Bell, of the Met’s East Area Basic Command Unit warned the public against all illegal drugs, particularly “those packaged in the form of cannabis sweets.”
“Please do not buy or consume these products. They are illegal and, because of the child-friendly packaging, they can pose a risk of accidental consumption,” Mr Bell said.
“The particular batch of sweets were contained in packaging featuring Trrlli Peachie O’s branding. It has not been confirmed at this stage where the sweets were manufactured.
“Drug dealers harm communities and risk the safety of individuals. We will take positive action to target those engaged in this activity as well as those found in possession of these substances.
“Anyone with information about people selling illegal products such as these is asked to speak with local officers, call police on 101 or, to remain anonymous, contact Crimestoppers.”
A special post-mortem examination will be arranged in due course, the Met said.
