Couple Busted for Manufacturing DMT

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A local couple stands accused of manufacturing DMT - an illegal, hallucinogenic drug that officials have compared to LSD - with ingredients and instructions obtained via the Internet.

Amanda M. Matthew, 23, of Fulton, and boyfriend Mark S. Gianoli, 24, of Columbia, are scheduled to appear in court March 9, on charges of possession of controlled substance with intent to distribute.

The pair faces the felony charges after Callaway County Sheriff's officials conducted a Jan. 8 raid on a laboratory allegedly operated inside Matthew's home outside Fulton.

CCSD narcotics investigator Shannon Jeffries said initial reports led investigators to believe the couple was making methamphetamine. Several household chemicals common to meth manufacture, such as ammonia, had been spotted inside Matthew's home, he said.

So officials were surprised to find the pair near completion of a four-step process for making DMT, which Jeffries said is not unheard-of in large cities but extremely unusual in Callaway County.

“There's not many labs of this stuff in production,” Jeffries said.

DMT, or dimethyltryptamine, is classified by the Drug Enforcement Administration as a Schedule 1 narcotic, meaning it is believed to have a high potential for abuse and no accepted medical use. The chemical can be found naturally in plants and is used in shamanic rituals practiced by indigenous peoples and religious sects of South America.

As a street drug, crystalline DMT is typically smoked to produce a short-lived but extremely potent psychotropic high, Jeffries said.

Jeffries said the drug's rarity likely led the couple online to seek ingredients and instructions for its manufacture.

“You would be surprised the number of recipes you can get over the Internet,” he said.

For now, Jeffries said he does not believe the bust indicates that DMT use or manufacture is accelerating locally.

“I hope it's a fluke,” he said. “Once one or two people know how to do this, it can flare up.

“We hope to get a handle on this quickly.”

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