http://www.usdoj.gov/dea/programs/forensicsci/microgram/mg0308/mg0308.html
March 2008
- INTELLIGENCE ALERT-
UNUSUAL “RICE KRISPIE TREAT”-LIKE BALLS CONTAINING PSILOCYBE
MUSHROOM PARTS IN WARREN COUNTY, MISSOURI
Photo 1
Photo 1
The Missouri State Highway Patrol Crime Laboratory - Jefferson City recently received two paper bags, one containing loose plant material and the second containing three brightly green colored “grain balls” (two inside a plastic zip-lock bag in the bag, and the third loose in the bag), all suspected marijuana (see Photo 1 for the balls that were inside the zip-lock). The balls appeared to have been dyed green. The exhibits were seized in Warren County by the Missouri State Highway Patrol, pursuant to a consent and subsequent canine search of a vehicle (Warren County is about 60 miles west of St. Louis). Analysis of the plant material (total net mass 0.82 grams) by microscopy, TLC, and Modified Duquenois-Levine confirmed marijuana. Analysis of the balls (total net mass 148.7 grams) by TLC and GC/MS, however, indicated not marijuana or THC but rather psilocin (not quantitated). Closer examination of the balls indicated mushroom material mixed into the grains. This is the first submission of Psilocybe mushrooms in this form to the laboratory.
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- INTELLIGENCE ALERT -
PACKAGE OF PRESUMED MARIJUANA SEEDS (FOR “FEMINIZED BC BUD
HASH PLANTS”) IN LAUREL, MARYLAND
The Maryland State Police - Forensic Sciences Division Laboratory (Pikesville) recently received two white plastic rectangular packages with pink and yellow tubes sticking out of the ends, each containing five small seeds interspaced between multiple cotton tip swaps, suspected marijuana seeds (see Photos 2 - 4). The packages were seized by the Howard County Police Department at an inactive marijuana grow operation in Laurel, Maryland (located midway between Baltimore and Washington, DC); many other marijuana exhibits were also seized. Both packages were labelled as “BCFH.” Holding each package against a bright light showed five internal compartments with five dark items all together in the central compartment (see Photo 2). Opening the package revealed the seeds and multiple cotton tip swabs (see Photo 3). Because of the large number of other marijuana exhibits, the seeds (see Photo 4) were not analyzed or germinated; however, an internet search led to a marijuana grow website, which indicated that the seeds were for “Feminized BC Bud Hash” plants. The purpose of the cotton swab tips is not known, but they may have been in the packages to prevent germination. This is the first submission of this type to the laboratory.
- INTELLIGENCE ALERT -
POLY-DRUG SEIZURE OF HALLUCINOGENS IN
UPPER DARBY TOWNSHIP, PENNSYLVANIA
The Pennsylvania State Police Crime Laboratory in Lima, Pennsylvania, recently received a poly-drug submission consisting of: A) 42 round green tablets marked with the Batman logo on one face and half-scored on the reverse face, suspected MDMA (see Photo 5); B) 20 round white tablets marked with “G.” on one face and a reclining woman logo on the reverse face, suspected MDA (see Photo 6); C) Four squares of white blotter paper, suspected LSD (no photo); D) Two bags of white powder, submitted as an unknown (no photo); and E) 29 clear capsules containing white or off-white solids, also submitted as an unknown. The exhibits were seized in three separate but related operations in Upper Darby Township (near Philadelphia) by the Upper Darby Township Police (no further details).
Analysis of the green tablets (total net mass 14.9 grams) by GC/MS, however, indicated not MDMA but rather a 1 : 1 mixture of caffeine and 3,4-methylenedioxymethylnitrostyrene (an intermediate in the synthesis of MDA or 3,4-methylenedioxyphenyl-2-propanone). When tested with the Marquis reagent, the samples from the green tablets turned black, but the color did not spread into the liquid. Analysis of the white tablets (total net mass 6.2 grams) by Marquis and GC/MS confirmed MDA (not quantitated). Analysis of the blotter paper by Ehrlich’s and GC/MS confirmed LSD (not quantitated). Analysis of the first bag of powder (total net mass 0.53 grams) by GC/MS and IR indicated ketamine (not quantitated). However, analysis of the second bag of powder (total net mass 0.21 grams) by GC/MS and microcrystal testing indicated dextromethorphan (not quantitated). Analysis of the capsules by GC indicated four different drugs: 1) 19 capsules (total net mass 0.95 grams) contained 2,5-dimethoxy-4-ethylamine (2C-E, not quantitated, see Photo 7 (Photos 7 - 10 next page)); 2) six capsules (total net mass 0.71 grams) contained 5-methoxy-N,N-diisopropyltryptamine (5-MeO-DIPT, also known as Foxy-Methoxy, not quantitated, see Photo 8); 3) three capsules (total net mass 0.36 grams) contained 2,5-dimethoxy-4-bromophenethylamine (2C-B, also known as Nexus, not quantitated, see Photo 9); and 4) one capsule (total net mass 0.10 grams) contained 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (5-MeO-DMT, not quantitated, see Photo 10).
This was the first submission of 5-MeO-DIPT, 5-MeO-DMT, 2C-B, 2C-E, and 3,4-methylene-dioxymethylnitrostyrene to the laboratory. The large variety of drugs in this case was unusual.
Photo 7
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- INTELLIGENCE ALERT -
LSD BLOTTER ACID MIMIC (ACTUALLY CONTAINING A MIXTURE OF
4-CHLORO-2,5-DIMETHOXYAMPHETAMINE (DOC) AND
4-IODO-2,5-DIMETHOXYAMPHETAMINE (DOI)) IN PADUCAH, KENTUCKY
The Kentucky State Police Western Laboratory Branch (Madisonville) recently received a single white square of blotter paper, wrapped in foil, suspected LSD (photo not taken). The exhibit was acquired by the Paducah Police from a cooperating source. The square was approximately ¼-inch by ¼-inch, and was unmarked. Analysis of a methanolic extract by GC/MS, however, indicated not LSD but rather a mixture of 4-chloro-2,5-dimethoxyamphetamine (DOC) and 4-iodo-2,5-dimethoxyamphetamine (DOI). The DOC and DOI were not formally quantitated, but were present in a moderate loading in a 2.2 : 1 ratio, based on a secondary GC/FID analysis. This was the first submission of either DOC or DOI to the laboratory.
- INTELLIGENCE ALERT -
PSILOCYBE MUSHROOMS IN NILES, OHIO
The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation - Richfield Laboratory recently received a shipping box containing two large plastic bags, each containing “vegetation” (total net mass 2288 grams), suspected Psilocybe mushrooms (see Photo 11). The box had been mailed from the U.S. west coast and was seized by the Niles Police at a local mail-handling facility (Niles is a northern suburb of Youngstown). Following basic workup, analysis of an ether extract of the material (reconstituted in chloroform) by GC/FID and GC/MS confirmed psilocin. The laboratory has previously received Psilocybe mushrooms, but this was an unusually large submission.
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- INTELLIGENCE ALERT -
HEROIN IN A LAPTOP COMPUTER AND POWER SUPPLY (FROM COLOMBIA)
AT MIAMI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
The DEA Northeast Laboratory (New York, New York) recently received a non-operational laptop computer and power supply containing a total of six packages of beige powder, suspected heroin (see Photo 12). The exhibits were seized by Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel from a passenger who arrived at Miami’s International Airport from a flight originating in Colombia. Five of the packages were concealed in the computer, while the sixth was in the power supply. Analysis of the powder (total net mass 746.6 grams) by GC/FID, GC/MS, NMR, and FTIR/ATR confirmed 56.5 percent heroin hydrochloride, adulterated with diltiazem (not quantitated). This was the second submission of heroin in a laptop computer to the Northeast Laboratory; however, the first submission was in a partially operational laptop (which was highly unusual; see: Heroin Smuggled from Bogota to Miami in an Operational Laptop Computer. Microgram Bulletin 2008;41(1):3). The laboratory has previously encountered heroin adulterated with diltiazem.
- INTELLIGENCE BRIEF -
DIMETHYLAMPHETAMINE IN “ICE”-LIKE FORM IN UDORN, THAILAND
The DEA Special Testing and Research Laboratory (Dulles, Virginia) recently received an exhibit of clear, colorless crystals, suspected “Ice” methamphetamine (see Photo 13). The exhibit was sampled from a 2 kilogram seizure made by the Narcotics Suppression Board/Korat in Udorn, Thailand. Analysis of the material (total net mass 0.28 grams) by GC/FID, GC/MS, FT/NMR, and FTIR/ATR, however, indicated not methamphetamine but rather 98.5 percent N,N-dimethylamphetamine hydrochloride. This was the first submission of dimethylamphetamine in “Ice”-like form to the Special Testing and Research Laboratory.
[Editor’s Notes: Similar exhibits have been submitted domestically to the DEA Western and DEA South Central Laboratories; see: (A) Dimethylamphetamine in Apparent “Ice”-Form Near Medford, Oregon. Microgram Bulletin 2004;37(11):195; and (B) Dimethylamphetamine in “Ice”-Like Form in Florence, Alabama. Microgram Bulletin 2005;38(2):33.]
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- INTELLIGENCE ALERT -
VIALS OF FREEZE-DRIED HUMAN GROWTH HORMONE (HGH)
IN EAST MEADOW, NEW YORK
The DEA Mid-Atlantic Laboratory (Largo, Maryland) recently received 2 boxes, both labelled “S.I.U.G.,” and each containing 10 clear glass vials of a white powder, alleged to be freeze-dried human growth hormone (HGH, see Photo 14). The vials were seized in East Meadow, New York, by the Nassau County Police, and were submitted to the laboratory after a controlled delivery in Virginia by Special Agents from the DEA Washington, DC District Office. Analysis of the powder (total net mass 0.80 grams in the 20 vials) by MS, FTIR, LC, and LC/MS indicated HGH (not confirmed). This is the first submission of alleged freeze-dried HGH to the Mid-Atlantic Laboratory.
[Editor’s Note: An Internet search indicates that S.I.U.G. is an underground laboratory operating in the New York area, specializing in anabolic steroids, HGH, and similar products.]
- INTELLIGENCE ALERT -
QUETIAPINE IN HEROIN IN DETROIT, MICHIGAN
The DEA North Central Laboratory (Chicago, Illinois) recently received an exhibit of suspected heroin, purchased during an ongoing DEA investigation (details sensitive). Analysis of the sample (total net mass 1.2 grams, photo not taken) by GC/MS, IR, and GC/FID confirmed 11.3 percent heroin hydrochloride, caffeine, lidocaine (salt undetermined), diphenhydramine (salt undetermined), benzocaine, quinine (salt undetermined), and an unknown that eluted approximately 2 minutes after quinine. A mass spectral library search indicated that the unknown was quetiapine (subsequently confirmed via GC/MS comparison with a standard). Quetiapine (trade name Seroquel) is a prescription medication used in the treatment of schizophrenia. The quetiapine was not formally quantitated; however, it was between 1 and 5 percent based on the TIC. While this is not the first instance of quetiapine in a submission to the North Central Laboratory, it is not commonly seen as an adulterant in heroin.
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- INTELLIGENCE ALERT -
N-ISOPROPYLBENZYLAMINE HYDROCHLORIDE (AS “ICE”
METHAMPHETAMINE MIMICS) ON THE WEST COAST
The DEA Western Laboratory (San Francisco, California) recently received exhibits from three unrelated seizures, each containing apparent “Ice” methamphetamine (e.g., see Photo 15), that was subsequently identified as pure N-isopropylbenzylamine hydrochloride.
The first exhibit was submitted by the DEA Fresno Resident Office (California), and was seized from a vehicle in Bakersfield (no further information). The exhibit consisted of 15 plastic snap-top containers wrapped in black 10 mil PVC tape, all containing large white crystals. Analysis of the crystals (total net mass 6723 grams) by Raman, FTIR-ATR, GC/FID, and GC/MS identified N-isopropylbenzylamine hydrochloride.
The second exhibit was submitted by the DEA Salem Resident Office (Oregon), and was seized in Salem by the Oregon State Police, along with 21 kilogram bricks of cocaine hydrochloride (no further information). The exhibit consisted of two rectangular, plastic snap-top containers, both containing large, white crystals. Analyses of the crystals (total net mass 891.0 grams) by Marquis color test (slight orange to brown color transition), FTIR-ATR, and GC/MS again identified N-isopropylbenzylamine hydrochloride.
The third submission was submitted by the DEA Sacramento District Office (California), and was seized near Redding as a result of a domestic highway enforcement program by the Tehama County Sheriff’s Department (no further information). The exhibit consisted of five plastic snap-top containers, each wrapped in white plastic shopping bags and clear plastic, with automotive grease and coffee grounds layered on the inner layers, all containing large, white crystals. Analyses of the crystals (total net mass 2230 grams) by Marquis color test, FTIR-ATR, and GC/MS again identified N-isopropylbenzylamine hydrochloride.
[Editor’s Notes: In addition to the anomalous Marquis results, it was noted by the analysts that the N-isopropylbenzylamine hydrochloride crystals grind much easier than similar sized “Ice” methamphetamine crystals. N-Isopropylbenzylamine hydrochloride is not controlled, and does not have CNS stimulant effects at typical methamphetamine dosage levels. N-Methylbenzylamine and N-ethylbenzylamine have also been used as “Ice” methamphetamine mimics; see: Microgram Bulletin 2007;40(8):79.]
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