Timothy New, Synthetic Drug Trafficking, California 2016

Two Sentenced for Synthetic Drug Shipments in California

FRESNO, Calif. — On Friday, December 2, 2016, U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd sentenced two defendants for their involvement in a large-scale smokeable synthetic cannabinoid trafficking organization based in Millbrae and Stockton.

Timothy New, 34, of Pensacola, Florida, was sentenced to two and a half years in prison and ordered to forfeit $50,053, and Natalie Middleton, 31, of Clovis, California, was sentenced to four months in prison and ordered to forfeit $11,236.

Synthetic smokeable cannabinoid products are synthetic drugs commonly known as “spice” or “K-2.” These products are falsely touted as legal alternatives to controlled substances. In some instances, however, they are far more lethal.

According to court documents, New and Middleton, along with Douglas Jason Way and Timothy Ortiz, were involved in a drug trafficking enterprise that imported raw synthetic cannabinoids from China containing AM-2201 and XLR11 that they processed into a smokeable form. They distributed the drugs to smoke shops, adult novelty stores, gas stations, and other retail establishments throughout the United States.

The drugs were manufactured by Zencense IncenseWorks, LLC, aka ZIW, LLC (dba Zencense), ZenBio, LLC (dba ZenBio), and Biozen, LLC (dba Biozen) and were sold under the brand names of Bizarro, Orgazmo, Headhunter, Defcon, Neutronium, Sonic Zero, Sonic Boom, Sonic Blast, Shockwave, Hampster, and Posh.

This case is the product of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with assistance from the Food and Drug Administration and the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office.

Charges against Way and Ortiz are pending. They are next scheduled to appear in court on December 12, 2016. If convicted, they face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $10 million for drug trafficking offenses and drug misbranding charges.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-edca/pr/two-sentenced-synthetic-drug-shipments