Although synthetic cannabis, or spice, was banned in Alabama in 2011, police and an addiction recovery specialist say the drug continues to be used, with Decatur police arresting two individuals earlier this year for trafficking large quantities of the drug.
Decatur Police Capt. George Silvestri, head of the department’s Criminal Investigation Division, said he has seen synthetic cannabis use fluctuate in the city over the years.
According to Silvestri, Decatur police seized 523 grams of synthetic cannabinoids and 349 grams of fentanyl in 2024. In 2023, they seized 309 grams of synthetic cannabinoids and 1,333 grams of fentanyl, while in 2022, seizures totaled 1,364 grams of synthetic cannabinoids and 329 grams of fentanyl.
A January seizure of 5.2 pounds (2,359 grams) of synthetic cannabinoids has been the largest yet.
Decatur police said they seized the spice, as well as marijuana, Jan. 14 at a residence on Sumac Road Southwest near Lakewood Apartments. Joshtez Oneal Bolding, 30, was charged with trafficking synthetic cannabinoids, first-degree possession of marijuana and two counts of chemical endangerment. He was released from jail a week after his arrest after posting a $190,000 bond.
On Feb. 26, Decatur police said they seized synthetic cannabinoids and other drugs from a residence on Memorial Drive Southwest. Brandon Lamar Gladney, 37, was charged with trafficking illegal drugs and was released the same day after posting a $50,000 bond. In October 2014, he had been convicted of trafficking synthetic cannabinoids.
“My biggest fear is that some types of spice might be laced with fentanyl,” Silvestri said. “That’s the one that scares us the most because of the potential of fatal overdoses. I have a hard time understanding why people would want to do spice.”
Silvestri said each year, individuals manufacturing spice will alter the chemical composition to make it more potent.
“That’s the thing; you really don’t know what’s in it,” Silvestri said. “I remember back many years ago when it first started coming out, they were literally spraying grass clippings. They would spray chemicals on it and sell it.”
Silvestri said when he was involved in the Narcotics Unit in 2018 and 2019, he witnessed more spice trafficking and use. Many years ago, Silvestri said he responded to a call about unruly patients in the emergency room at Decatur Morgan Hospital who had overdosed on spice. What he saw shocked him.
“There were four guys over there that had overdosed on spice and they were acting like zombies,” Silvestri said. “Just walking around, growling at people.”
Rendell Drummond started Living Free in 2013, a sober-living facility in Hartselle, and has seen several individuals in his care over the last 12 years who have abused synthetic cannabinoids. He said the addiction can be difficult to track.
“They make drug tests that will screen for it, but out of all the years and all the screens I have bought, I have never had one that tested positive,” Drummond said. “From what I understand, they change the chemicals in it and it’s just impossible to test for.”
Drummond said he has recently witnessed and heard of individuals consuming synthetic cannabinoids by what they call a “paper route.” He said this is commonly seen in prisons.
“This was about four or five months ago, I went to a guy’s bedroom and the staff told me he was obviously under the influence of something,” Drummond said. “I went in and he was just tore up from the floor up. Couldn’t hardly talk, eyes almost closed, and couldn’t hardly stand up.”
Drummond found that the man had not been drinking and informed him he was about to call law enforcement and the K-9 unit if he did not disclose the location of his drugs.
“He opened up a magazine, and inside that magazine, he had a little bitty square piece of paper,” Drummond said. “I found out later that what they do is cut whatever it is, poison is what I call it, that they spray on synthetic marijuana and they put this same poison on pieces of paper. They’ll take that piece of paper and put it on the end of a cigarette and smoke it and it is a really strong way to administer whatever it is that they put on synthetic marijuana.”
The “poison” Drummond is referring to are indazole-based compounds that are dissolved in solvents and sprayed onto plant material or paper. Indazoles are a class of synthetic chemical compounds that are often used as the main ingredient in synthetic cannabinoids such as spice and K2. They are designed to mimic the effects of THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, but are far more lethal.
Synthetic cannabinoid identifications spiked in the second quarter of 2024, making up 12% of all novel psychoactive substances in the United States, before declining to 10% by the fourth quarter, according to the Center for Forensic Science Research and Education.
H/T: www.yahoo.com
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