More than a dozen treasure hunters aged up to 80 were left in need of hospital treatment after unknowingly tucking into a birthday cake believed to have been laced with cannabis.

Thirteen of the 15 metal detectorists who fell ill were taken to hospital by ambulance "after ingesting an unknown substance" at a celebration in the High Melton area near South Yorkshire on Saturday evening.

Police said it is thought that the substance in question was cannabis, with the illegal drug seemingly having found its way into a 50th birthday cake at the event.

All of those who fell ill are said to be metal detectorists, aged between 50 and 80, who had been invited to an event called Coil to the Soil to mark the upcoming birthday of one of those in attendance.

According to Treasure Hunting magazine editor Julian Evan-Hart, who spoke to people after the incident, the man who the cake was made for "thought he was having a coronary".


"Symptoms were giddiness, drowsiness and people were feeling really ill," he said.

"The man who the cake was made for thought he was having a coronary. It would be a totally alien feeling for him as he will not have had anything like this. What the hell would you think was going on?"

South Yorkshire Police said the people who were taken to hospital have been discharged, and a 48-year-old woman from County Durham has been released on bail after being arrested in connection with the incident.

As well as ambulance crews, doctors and police officers, two clinical supervisors and a hazardous area response team were also called to the scene.

Mr Evan-Hart said there was not believed to be any "malevolent" feeling over the lacing of the cake, and he believed it may have been spiked as a prank.