Drugs in Ohio

(Ohio Turnpike) A traffic stop by the Ohio Highway Patrol for following too closely resulted in the discovery of 170 pounds of khat, the recreational drug used by indigenous populations of the Horn of Africa and the southern Arabian Peninsula. The value was estimated at $385,900.

From ToledoBlade.com:

Khat is the common name for the leaves of the shrub catha edulis, which in the plant's native area are sold in small bunches at markets and consumed by chewing. The most active ingredient in the leaves, cathinone, is unstable and breaks down within a few days if the leaves are not kept refrigerated.

The patrol said khat is considered a hallucinogen. According to other reference sources, including a paper by Richard A. Glennon, a professor at Virginia Commonwealth University who studies addictive drugs, khat is a stimulant similar in nature to ephedrine and amphetamine.

Although there is some disagreement as to whether the drug is an amphetamine or hallucinogen, there's no doubt that khat is illegal. Charges of possession of a drug of abuse were filed in Maumee Municipal Court against Hussein Ahmed Mohamed, 31, of Minneapolis and Maxamed Abshar, 35, of Phoenix.

According to Highway Patrol spokesman Sgt. Craig Cvetan, the large seizure of khat could indicate that it's becoming more prevalent in Ohio. Of course, Mohamed and Abshar may have just been passing through the state.

(Delphos, Ohio) In other traffic stop news, a marked lanes violation on U.S. 30 in Sugar Creek Township resulted in the discovery of 33 pounds of marijuana and a plastic container with $115,330 cash. Troopers said they could smell the marijuana from a distance and, therefore, searched the car. The driver's name was not released. He was reportedly en route from Akron to Fort Wayne.

I'm personally tickled by how often drug traffickers, who typically employ expensive lawyers and sophisticated techniques to smuggle contraband, end up in prison because they don't know how to follow simple traffic laws. If they had any sense, they would set up their own driving school.