Green agenda: a flood of herbal drugs has poured into Russia
International drug dealers are looking for new ways to import cannabinoid-type drugs into Russia. Since the beginning of the year, Russian customs officers have seized several significant shipments of marijuana and hashish-based drugs from different parts of the world. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.
They carry buckets
Sheremetyevo customs officers seized a large shipment of cannabinoid-type drugs disguised as a plant extract at the airport.
"During customs control, inspectors found five buckets of white powder. The product was sent to a food additive manufacturing company as a cannabidiol extract without prohibited substances. However, the examination showed that it is a narcotic drug of the cannabis group — tetrahydrocannabinol," the agency said in a statement.
The service's operatives identified the alleged organizer of the production and sale of narcotic dietary supplements. A search was conducted at the place of residence of the 47-year—old CEO of the company - 3 kg of drugs were found in the apartment, another 2 kg was stored by the man in a warehouse at the place of production. The defense insists that the accused allegedly did not know that the product was illegal. The goods produced by the company were sold on marketplaces and distributed throughout the country.
This is not the first attempt to import large quantities of herbal drugs over the past few months. For example, a large shipment of hashish almost entered Russia from the territory of Belarus along with an empty truck. The driver hid more than 140 kg of the drug in his sleeping place, the approximate cost of which on the black market is about 350 million rubles.
The Izvestia source also reported on the supply of cannabinoids from Southeast Asian countries to the Russian market.
— The criminal world is trying to find a weak spot in the international postal logistics system, given the huge volume of trade with Eastern countries. In some cases, intruders actually manage to deliver cannabinoid-type drugs for a long time under the guise of household mixtures, agricultural materials, paints, and inks.
The crisis of overproduction
Retired Colonel of Justice Sergey Pelikh, an expert on international drug trafficking, talks about the growing demand for cannabinoid-type drugs, as well as the desire of several global centers for the production of marijuana and hashish to occupy the Russian market.
"Technological progress is also spreading to drugs of plant origin: for example, in the illicit manufacture of cocaine, both in its original production sites in South America and in clandestine laboratories in Western Europe, there is an increase in production," says the report of the International Narcotics Control Board for 2024 on the implementation of Articles 12 and 13 of the Convention. The United Nations Convention against Illicit Trafficking in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances of 1998. The document mentions that the criminal world uses special chemicals and equipment for the cultivation and subsequent processing of such drugs.
Background of the issue
The drug supply channel to Russia from North Africa (the plantations are located mainly on the territory of Morocco) lay through Spain, Moldova, Eastern European countries, then through Ukraine or the Baltic States. Izvestia described in detail who was the beneficiary of this criminal business. In the current political situation, this path has become significantly difficult. In addition, several years ago, as part of a joint police operation by several countries, including Russia, many drug mafia leaders ended up behind bars. Today, there is a tendency to restore the production of cannabinoids, and drug dealers are particularly interested in the Russian market, which has been cut off from Moroccan marijuana and hashish.
— Relatively small shipments enter the country by sea, but this is extremely unprofitable from a logistical point of view, — says Sergey Pelikh.
Fatigue from "synthetics"
The expert notes the growing demand for herbal drugs.
— The price of marijuana or hashish is significantly higher than the cost of a synthetic drug, — says the interlocutor of Izvestia. — Today, the price on the black market reaches 5,000 rubles per gram.
According to him, marijuana and hashish have a consistently large "audience." In addition, the use of such substances is encouraged by some destructive subcultures.
"High—income addicts are actively trying to get it," Pelich says.
A source in the medical community notes that herbal drugs pose a significant danger.
"For a long time, substances of plant origin soaked in a solution of synthetic drugs were sold under the guise of marijuana," a Moscow psychiatrist and narcologist told Izvestia. — In our work, we often come across consumers of this "stuff" with an unpredictable chemical composition, they come to us regularly in a state of severe intoxication, with mental disorders.
According to the Russian Interior Ministry, over 19,000 crimes related to drug trafficking were detected in January (27.5% more than in the same period of 2024). The police also state that the proportion of such crimes committed using information technology has increased — 60.4% (compared to the same period last year). In January, the security forces opened 36 criminal cases on smuggling.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
