Philadelphia CBP Seizes New Imitation Marijuana
Philadelphia CBP Stems Flow of New Imitation Marijuana
(Friday, February 19, 2010) contacts for this news release
Philadelphia – K2 has long been recognized as a manufacturer of equipment for popular winter sports, but there’s a new K2 hitting the market this winter. Customs and Border Protection officers in Philadelphia in partnership with CBP scientists in Savannah, Ga., discovered it to be synthetic cannabinoid, and seized it to the tune of nearly two kilograms since December.
The latest seizures occurred on Tuesday. CBP officers discovered two international mail parcels on Jan. 6 that contained a combined 32 grams, or a little more than one ounce. An analysis by CBP’s Laboratories and Scientific Services recently concluded that the sample was positive for JWH-018, a synthetic cannabinoid.
CBP officers have so far seized 85 parcels with a combined weight of 1,940 grams, or about 4 pounds, 4 ounces. The parcels, which were sold under the brand name K2, arrived from Amsterdam. The parcels ranged in size from four grams to 92 grams, and were destined for various addresses across the U.S.
JWH-018 products allegedly sell for up to $50 for three grams; the domestic value of these seizures could equal up to $30,000.
“JWH-018 is a relatively new discovery for us,” said Allan Martocci, CBP Port Director for the Area Port of Philadelphia. “If it indeed reacts similar to marijuana, then it poses some real concern for law enforcement, and it’s good that CBP removed these products from our nation’s marketplace.”
The K2 products were manifested as natural incense and resemble potpourri, but they are laced with the synthetic cannabinoid compound. Users inhale it for its marijuana-like stimulant.
Synthetic cannabinoid is not listed as a DEA Schedule-1 narcotic; however, the DEA lists JWH-018 and similar cannabinoid compounds as a Drug and Chemical of Concern. The Missouri and Kansas legislatures are considering criminalizing synthetic marijuana.
CBP officers then turned to the Food and Drug Administration to determine whether the JWH-018 violated any of their regulations.
The FDA concluded that JWH-018 had met the definition of a new drug according to the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, and is subject to an approved drug application. K2 has no known application on file.
When CBP officers discovered the initial parcels on Dec. 9, 2009, they turned to CBP’s Laboratories and Scientific Services (LSS) in Savannah to tell them what the product was and its risks.
LSS is CBP’s forensic, scientific and engineering arm. They conduct forensic and scientific testing in the area of trade enforcement, weapons of mass destruction, intellectual property rights, and narcotics enforcement.
“These seizures illustrate the tremendous cooperation between CBP’s front-line officers and our scientific experts,” said Martocci. “Our officers discovered a peculiar product that they suspected to be potentially harmful, and scientific analysis confirmed the product to be synthetic cannabinoid, a product which is prohibited by the FDA for entry to the U.S.”
Each of the eight LSS field laboratories operates a mobile laboratory that is used at the borders for on-site emergency response and programmatic on-site border security operations.
LSS also operates a Telelforensics Center where scientists and engineers respond to alarms triggered when conveyances, such as container trucks, pass through radiation portal monitors while departing our nation’s seaports. LSS resolves or initiates appropriate responses to each alarm prior to the conveyance being permitted to depart the seaport.
Short URL: http://www.news.synavista.com/?p=8133
Posted by