On March 6, police officers in Montgomery County arrested a man who they believed was making synthetic drugs and selling them to high school students in the area. The individual taken into custody, whose name the police did not release, was out on a bail for an earlier aggravated robbery charge at the time. The police department made the arrest after conducting an investigation with the constable’s office and police departments from Houston and Conroe.
After obtaining a search warrant, police officers reportedly found blotter paper, 86 grams of cocaine, 10 pounds of marijuana and 10,000 doses of PCP at a Harris County home. The cartoon character design on the blotter paper was allegedly similar to the design found on synthetic LSD distributed in Montgomery County.
The investigation started after a 16-year-old Montgomery high school student died and three students, from Montgomery and Willis area high schools, were hospitalized in February due to adverse reactions to synthetic drugs. Police were looking for the person responsible for manufacturing 25I-NBOMe, also known as “N Bomb.” This synthetic had been linked to high school students in Montgomery, Willis, Oak Ridge, Spring and Caney Creek. In the case, local police made 12 arrests, including nine juvenile arrests, many of which were on charges of marijuana or controlled substance possession.
In criminal cases in which individuals are brought up on drug manufacturing charges, the burden of proof lies on the prosecution side to prove that the defendants had the drugs in their possession and had an intention to manufacture and distribute them. In cases involving drugs, the defense side might be able to argue for a lesser possession charge if prosecutors don’t have enough evidence, such as equipment used in the manufacturing process, to prove a connection. Being able to demonstrate that police used unlawful methods, such as searching a home without a warrant, to gather evidence can also help the defense side’s case.
Source: The Courier, “Cops believe they found Montgomery County juveniles’ synthetic drug supplier,” Brandon K. Scott, March 6, 2015
Source FindLaw, “Drug Manufacturing and Cultivation,” accessed on March 19, 2015