Talk about a sour situation; lemons filled with needles keep mysteriously appearing in Coquitlam parks, prompting RCMP to ask one simple question: why?

In the last month, police have found two lemons with sewing needles inside them suspended from trees.

The first, discovered on June 22, was found tied to a branch in Gates Park. The second lemon was found July 14 on a Coquitlam River trail near Whyte Avenue.

If you find a lemon with needles, please call us and don't throw it away. Find out more: https://t.co/HnXX6q6H6W pic.twitter.com/xnpcAGUR6x

— CQ RCMP (@cqrcmp) July 15, 2020

Both discoveries were reported to police via email.

"If you see something that could be a deliberate attempt at harm, you must call police on the phone rather than send an email," said Coquitlam RCMP Cpl. Michael McLaughlin in a release.

"Both of these lemons were thrown into the garbage by the people who found them. By the time police received the emails, the evidence was gone and an investigation was virtually impossible."

Police are flummoxed by the discovery, saying that they don't know why someone would stab needles into a lemon but they don't think the intention is to harm anyone.

A few people on social media have pointed out that lemons with pins inside of them are tied to pagan witchcraft; a lemon with multi-coloured pins can be a symbol of good luck, according to a popular book by an American folklorist.

Conversely, a lemon with black pins is thought to bring evil to the target of the incantation.

Some Canadians are even pointing out that you can see a picture of what appears to be a person wedged between the two slices of lemon in the photograph below.

.@cqrcmp asking whoever is putting needles in lemons to stop. Two found recently -- one in Gates Park, one on a trail by the Coquitlam River. There are online claims this sort of thing may be connected to witchcraft/voodoo. RCMP don't think the intention is to hurt anyone. pic.twitter.com/X89qwlYiE2

— Sonia Aslam (@SoniaSAslam) July 15, 2020

"This is 1000% someone doing a love spell," one person wrote. "The needles are holding the two halves together."

Other people have suggested that it's a curse, or perhaps even a spell to bring good fortune.

One thing is certain, though: the RCMP is asking the perpetrator to stop leaving the needle-filled lemons lying around.

"If you are leaving these lemons full of needles in public, we ask that you stop, and then talk to us to explain what you were doing," said McLaughlin.