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Main Page Exotic Drug Seized In Rare N.H. Bust
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Posted by: kwflatbed

Some of the Khat seized by New Hampshire State Police
WBZ

Mohmed Osman Ahmed WBZ

HAMPTON, N.H. (WBZ) ― A routine traffic stop turned into a rare drug bust with international ties over the weekend in New Hampshire.

State police seized a large quantity of a drug known as "Khat."

The discovery came early Sunday morning when state trooper Bob Larcome pulled Mohmed Osman Ahmed over for a motor vehicle violation on Interstate 95 in Hampton.

During the stop, the trooper says he noticed something unusual in the car and began a search with another officer.

They uncovered a large pile of plants that turned out to be the amphetamine known as "Khat" from eastern Africa.

Investigators say the drug is ingested by chewing the plant, or drinking it like a tea.

The plants were taken to the State Police Forensic Lab Monday for testing.

Authorities say this is the first time that this type of drug has been seized in New Hampshire.

Ahmed, 40, of Roxbury, was arrested and charged with possession of a controlled drug with intent to distribute. He was released on $5,000 bail.

Ahmed was arrested in New York City in 2006 in "Operation Somalia Express," in which 44 people were captured in a raid that seized 25 tons of Khat.

For more information on Khat, visit:

http://newyork.fbi.gov/ or http://www.usdoj.gov/

http://wbztv.com/local/khat.bust.new.2.668196.html

Posted by: DeputyFife

Published: March 06, 2008 08:08 am

Troopers seize carload of illegal drug khat on I-95
By Angeljean Chiaramida
Staff writer

EPPING, N.H. — When New Hampshire State Trooper Bob Larcome pulled over Mohmed Ahmed early Sunday morning for backing up illegally on Interstate 95 southbound in Hampton, he found a plant in the car he'd never encountered.
Larcome didn't recognize it immediately, said State Police Troop A Commander Scott Carr, but Larcome and fellow Trooper Gary Ingham soon realized it was an illegal drug called khat — pronounced "cot" — an amphetamine or stimulant commonly used in Africa that's imported into the United States illegally.
"Fortunately Trooper Larcome was on the ball," Carr said. "He knew he had something there; he just didn't know what it was. Trooper Ingham had the DEA (drug) handbook with him, and they used it to identify the drug."
Ahmed, 40, of 140 Walnut Ave, Apt. 21, Roxbury, Mass., was arrested and charged with possession of a controlled/narcotic drug with intent to distribute.
He was able to raise the $5,000 cash bail set after his arrest pretty quickly. "He had his buddy come up with the $5,000 that morning," Carr said. "He's due to be arraigned on April 4 at Hampton District Court in Seabrook."
But the incident wasn't over for the State Police, Carr said. Because of the unusual nature of the arrest and the drug, they felt they had a duty to bring the finding to region-wide attention.
"This is the first time we've seen this drug here," Carr said. "And it was the first time khat was signed into the State Police Forensic Lab. Police rarely make an arrest on a new drug the very first time it comes into an area. The fact that we're just seeing it now means it's been here for a while."
Carr said the federal Drug Enforcement Agency classifies khat as both a Class I and IV drug. Class I drugs have a high potential for abuse and addiction and no medical use, like heroin. Class IV drugs have a low potential for abuse, like Valium or "diet drugs," but they may lead to physical or psychological dependency.
"This drug when it's first picked is considered a Class I drug by the DEA," Carr said. "But within a few days it loses its potency. When it's still fresh, the plant is chewed — like rhubarb or sugar cane. When it ages, it's often dried, ground up and used to brew a tea people drink."
Used as a common stimulant is some parts of Africa — like Somalia — as well as on the Arabian Peninsula, khat did not find a warm welcome upon reaching the United States.
Searching for more information, state police found a July 2006 press release distributed by the U.S. attorney for southern New York, the DEA and the FBI. The notice announced the takedown of an international drug trafficking ring responsible for smuggling in more than 25 tons of khat from Africa.
In the 2006 release, authorities estimated 25 tons of khat smuggled from the Horn of Africa was worth more than $10 million on the street. At the time, it was the largest khat trafficking prosecution in this country's history.
According to the New York press release: "The primary effects of the chewing of khat are euphoria and stimulation, and side effects include anorexia, heart disease, hypertension, cancer of the mouth ... gastric disorders, hallucination, hyperactivity, impotence, insomnia and irrational violence... "
While investigating the case, it was learned that khat was brought to the United States by arranging shipments from Africa carried to London and New York by human couriers on commercial airlines or sending packages of the drug to countries in Western Europe, then to New York using commercial mail services.
Members of the ring would then retrieve the khat in New York and send it via land to a number of states, including Maine and Massachusetts, where it was sold on the streets, according to the 2006 newsrelease.
"The more research we did on khat, the more we found out about this new drug and those involved with it," Carr said.
According to Essex County district attorney spokeswoman Karen Dawley, khat has not been in the mix of the illegal drug-related arrests in the county in recent years. However, about eight years ago there was a khat arrest made when members of the Essex County Drug Task Force joined with the mail service, she said. In that case, the khat was being smuggled into the country via the mail from Somalia, she said.

Posted by: screamineagle

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeputyFife

Published: March 06, 2008 08:08 am

Troopers seize carload of illegal drug khat on I-95
By Angeljean Chiaramida
Staff writer

According to the New York press release: "The primary effects of the chewing of khat are euphoria and stimulation, and side effects include anorexia, heart disease, hypertension, cancer of the mouth ... gastric disorders, hallucination, hyperactivity, impotence, insomnia and irrational violence... "

no shit. the f*cking skinnies chew the crap in the mid afternoon and then want to fight with anyone and everyone. The rot it causes in the mouth can be compared to meth mouth. Naaaaasty.

Posted by: CJIS

Nice Pinch

Posted by: Barbrady

Quote:

Originally Posted by screamineagle

no shit. the f*cking skinnies chew the crap in the mid afternoon and then want to fight with anyone and everyone. The rot it causes in the mouth can be compared to meth mouth. Naaaaasty.

...There is a large population of those refugees that have moved up to NH. Naturally they will bring that garbage with them

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