A little girl's dad allegedly spiked her friends' smoothies. But one of them fought back.

Singing along to your favourite popstar's latest song. Eating too much pizza. Telling jokes with your friends and laughing uncontrollably.

These are all the kinds of things 12-year-olds usually do when they go to friends' houses — and on August 25, 2023, one little girl's sleepover began just like any other. Four pre-teens were hanging out at one of the girls' houses, watching television as they prepared to spend the night.

But in the kitchen, something far more sinister may have been unfolding.

A new case has been brought before the courts in the US and it's what can only be described as a parents' worst nightmare. In legal documents obtained by PEOPLE, investigators have detailed an event that allegedly took place in a residential home in Oregon, where a 57-year-old father was hosting a sleepover for his young daughter and her three friends.

According to the affidavit, the father — Michael Meyden — made smoothies for his daughter and her guests, but after taking a sip, one of the girls didn't want to finish her drink. It didn't taste right, she said, so Meyden made her a new smoothie, which she also rejected. 

She and the other girls later told police she could see white chunks floating in the drink, and white powder on top.

Meyden — who the girls later told police had given them each unique, different-coloured straws — allegedly became "upset" that his daughter's friend turned down the drink and started accusing her and his daughter of "switching straws between their first and second cup", as per the affidavit.

The girls continued their evening, going to bed around an hour later (two of them sharing a pull-out couch in the basement, while Meyden's daughter and the other friend shared a bed in a nearby bedroom). The girls who drank their smoothies allegedly fell into a "thick, deep sleep", as the other girl pretended to be asleep. 

She later told police Meyden came into the room and conducted "tests" to check if the girls were asleep, allegedly putting his finger under her friend's nose and waving his hand in front of her face. Seemingly satisfied they were out, the 12-year-old said he removed her arm from around her friend and began to separate them on the pull-out couch they were sharing.

When he went back upstairs for a moment, she saw her chance to call for help.

"Please pick me up and say I had a family emergency," she texted her mum in the early hours of the morning. "I don't feel safe. I might not respond but please come get me [crying emoji], Please. Please pick up. Please. PLEASE!!"

But it was close to 2am — and her mum, who was fast asleep, didn't respond.

Frantic, the girl tried texting a friend, who woke up her own mum, who then went to the Meydens' home. Telling her friend's dad she had a family emergency, the 12-year-old left, and Meyden didn't try to stop her. Once home, she woke up her parents and told them the whole story. They contacted to the other two girls' parents, who, at 3am, went to Meyden's house to pick up their daughters.

When the parents arrived, two of the girls who had consumed the smoothies were allegedly having trouble walking and could not recall what happened to them after they "blacked out" at some point in the evening. The parents took the kids to the Randall Children's Hospital later that morning, where according to the affidavit, all three of the 12-year-old girls tested positive for benzodiazepines — a class of depressant drugs commonly known as "minor tranquilisers", and often prescribed for anxiety. 

Police met the girls' parents at the hospital that morning and an official investigation began. After recounting their version of events, police were able to obtain a police warrant, during which they recovered a Vitamix blender, a mortar and pestle, cups, straws, tramadol (a powerful opioid painkiller) and five bottles of temazepam (a benzodiazepine often used to treat severe or debilitating insomnia) from Michael Meyden's home where they alleged incident took place.

Thankfully, all three girls made a full recovery. 

Some seven months later, Meyden turned himself into the Lake Oswego Police Department, where he pleaded not guilty to nine felony and misdemeanour charges, including causing another person to ingest a controlled substance.

He has since been released on $76,000 ($50k USD) bail. Meyner and his wife of 16 years divorced less than two months after the night of the sleepover, KIRO7 reports.

He will now await trial for the charges brought against him. 

Stories like this are never easy to hear, especially when innocent young lives may be at risk. However, there is some comfort in knowing that this one young girl had the bravery and confidence to trust her instincts and act on behalf of herself and her friends.

Feature Image: Canva.