USA - Ten held for Internet designer drug sales

[chillinwill]

NEW ORLEANS — Ten people have been arrested on charges they sold or conspired to sell Ecstasy-like drugs and chemicals over the Internet, investigators said Thursday. The sales allegedly caused at least 16 overdoses, two of them fatal.

The drugs were supposedly being sold as research chemicals, but buyers’ e-mail names included acidtripo420, ecstasylight, ravergirlny and psychedeleic—stoner, the Drug Enforcement Agency said.

An indictment handed down Wednesday against Michael Burton, 25, of Las Vegas, accuses him of causing a man’s death — not as a murder charge but as a way to increase the sentence if he’s convicted.

Burton’s roommate, Keith Russart, 25, also was arrested. Both were charged on four counts of distributing illegal drugs, said U.S. Attorney David Dugas of Baton Rouge. The charges carry a prison term of 20 years to life in prison.

The eight others arrested this week live in Arizona, Georgia and California. The sales occurred in various states. All eight face conspiracy charges.

Three of five Web sites selling the drugs could not be reached Thursday. The fourth brought up a screen stating that the DEA had “restrained” it.

The fifth — Burton’s site — carried a 650-word statement that said, among other things, that the drugs were for research and not for human consumption.

The DEA alleged the suspects distributed three groups of hallucinogens and other drugs: tryptamines and phenylethylamines, which are related to important brain chemicals; and piperazines, which are related to a drug used for pinworms and roundworms.

“Many young people are led to believe that these substances are a form of ‘legal’ Ecstasy or LSD because they produce similar hallucinogenic effects. ... Many have the false impression that they are not as harmful or addictive as mainstream drugs such as heroin or cocaine,” the DEA said.

By Janet McConnaughey
July 23, 2004
The Daily Journal
http://smdailyjournal.com/article_pr...ate=07/23/2004

[Joe-(5-HTP)]

It just annoys me so much that they can make up statements like "Many have the false impression that they are not as harmful or addictive as mainstream drugs such as heroin or cocaine,” to validate their rediculous crusade.

[TheMainException]

Did any source happen to mention what exactly these drugs were that they were distributing?

[chillinwill]

Feds arrest 10 in connection with Net designer drug sales

NEW ORLEANS — Ten people have been arrested on charges they sold or conspired to sell Ecstasy-like drugs and chemicals over the Internet, investigators said Thursday. The sales allegedly caused at least 16 overdoses, two of them fatal.

The drugs were supposedly being sold as research chemicals, but buyers' e-mail names included acidtripo420, ecstasylight, ravergirlny and psychedeleic_stoner, the Drug Enforcement Agency said.

An indictment handed down Wednesday against Michael Burton, 25, of Las Vegas, accuses him of causing a man's death — not as a murder charge but as a way to increase the sentence if he's convicted.

Burton's roommate, Keith Russart, 25, also was arrested. Both were charged on four counts of distributing illegal drugs, said U.S. Attorney David Dugas of Baton Rouge. The charges carry a prison term of 20 years to life in prison.

The eight others arrested this week live in Arizona, Georgia and California. The sales occurred in various states. All eight face conspiracy charges.

A full list of names and charges other than those against Russart and Burton:

• April Curtis, 45, of Carefree, Ariz., and Doug Thompson, 33, of Valdosta, Ga., operators of www.racresearch.com, were arrested July 21 on charges of conspiracy to distribute controlled drug analogues out of the Southern District of New York. The site has been linked to non-fatal overdoses of two college students.

• Raymond Duncan, 22, of Wildomar, Calif., operator of www.duncanlabproducts.com, was arrested Wednesday on charges of conspiracy to distribute controlled substance analogues. Curtis supplied Duncan's drugs, the DEA said.

• David Linder, 50, Bullhead City, Ariz., was arrested Wednesday, accused of using the www.pondman.nu landscape supply site to sell designer drugs to U.S. Navy personnel in Norfolk, Va. Drugs from the site killed an 18-year-old and caused at least three overdoses which caused serious injuries, the DEA said. Charged with conspiracy to distribute controlled substance analogues in the Eastern District of Virginia.

• Thomas Kasper, 42, and Beth Badrak, 36, of Santa Barbara, Calif.; Joseph Kasper, 44, and Elaine Villalobos, 26, both of Santa Maria, Calif., on charges of conspiracy to distribute designer drug analogues, selling the drugs to people under age 21, and money laundering. They ran www.omegafinechemicals.com. Agents seized Omega's domain name and two bank accounts, searched the home of Thomas Kasper and Badrak, and searched the Omega business address.

Three of five Web sites selling the drugs could not be reached Thursday. The fourth brought up a screen stating that the DEA had "restrained" it.

The fifth — Burton's site — carried a 650-word statement that said, among other things, that the drugs were for research and not for human consumption.

The DEA alleged the suspects distributed three groups of hallucinogens and other drugs: tryptamines and phenylethylamines, which are related to important brain chemicals; and piperazines, which are related to a drug used for pinworms and roundworms.

"Many young people are led to believe that these substances are a form of 'legal' Ecstasy or LSD because they produce similar hallucinogenic effects. ... Many have the false impression that they are not as harmful or addictive as mainstream drugs such as heroin or cocaine," the DEA said.

However, it said, recommended dosages can vary by as little as a milligram, so a slight miscalculation can cause death.

By Janey McConnaughey
July 22, 2004
USA Today
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/20...t-xbusts_x.htm

[Abrad]

Originally Posted by TheMainException

Did any source happen to mention what exactly these drugs were that they were distributing?

Novel psychedelics such as 2c-i, AMT etc. The whole thing was triggered by someone dipping their finger in a vial of 2c-t-7 and dying iirc. This all happened years ago btw.

[Benga]

yes, this is a 2004 article

[chillinwill]

Yes it was almost 5 years ago but Alfa asked me to post this and tag them with operation web tryp.

[Alfa]

This is very important information as it gives readers a reality check on the legality of research chemicals and the related articles contain valuable legal and historical information about the DEA operation web tryp.

[thepieman1]

In other news, homebase has been shut down over the sale of potentially harmful furniture. They claimed to be selling garden furniture, great for the summer, but buyer's e-mail names included "tableWeildingaxemurderer" and "whoppeecusionsonhesebabies".