Defendants Indicted in Large-Scale Synthetic Drug Conspiracy in Tennessee
Five individuals, including four defendants who were arrested yesterday, have been indicted in a large-scale synthetic drug conspiracy in Tennessee. The indictment, announced by Acting U.S. Attorney David Rivera and Metro Nashville Police Chief Steve Anderson, charges the defendants with various counts of conspiring to manufacture, distribute, and possess with intent to distribute controlled substance analogues, also known as ‘synthetic’ or ‘designer’ drugs.
The indictment alleges that the defendants, who operated companies called Faded Botanicals, New Age Wholesale, and Toke-N-Roll, manufactured and sold synthetic drugs to wholesale and retail customers throughout the United States. The ‘designer’ drugs, which were sold as potpourri or plant food, carried names like ‘Molly’s Plant Food,’ ‘K4 XXX Gang,’ ‘Bang Ban Russian Roulette,’ and ‘El Cheapo.’
According to the indictment, the defendants operated two smoke shops in the Nashville area called ‘Toke-N-Roll,’ where they sold the synthetic drug products along with rolling papers, vaporizers, and bongs. The products allegedly contained controlled substance analogues, which are similar to Schedule I controlled substances in chemical composition and their effect on the body.
Acting U.S. Attorney David Rivera said, ‘Criminals who sell illegal drugs cannot evade justice by simply changing a molecule in the compounding structure of the substance.’
Metro Nashville Police Chief Steve Anderson added, ‘Criminal investigations such as this save lives and protect families. These products have been found to be inherently dangerous and seemingly packaged to appeal to teenagers and young adults.’
The indictment alleges that the conspiracy lasted from at least July 2010 to October 5, 2012, and that the defendants manufactured synthetic drug products themselves at an unsanitary warehouse in Kentucky. According to the indictment, the defendants made the synthetic drugs products using chemicals they had purchased over the internet, cooking them on a dirty hot plate and dissolving them in alcohol before pouring them and a green leafy substance into a rusty and corroded industrial mixer meant to mix concrete.
The defendants charged in the indictment are:
1. Eric Ronnell Alexander, 26, of Antioch, Tennessee;
2. Barry Gregory Vail, 27, of Antioch, Tennessee;
3. Tabatha Lynn Baird, 20, of Antioch, Tennessee;
4. Johnathan Landon Smith, a/k/a ‘London,’ 29, of Spring Hill, Tennessee; and
5. Candice Ruth White, 36, of Nashville, Tennessee.
Key Facts
- State: Tennessee
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: DOJ Press Release ↗
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