Friday September 28, 2007
Tainted Love:
Feds Bust Cannabis-Laced Sweet Makers
by The Mullah
DEA agents have shut down Tainted Inc. -- a San Francisco outfit manufacturing cannabis sweets intended for medical users.
"This appears to be represent, once again, the federal government taking umbrage with the fact that California has legalised medical marijuana for medical patients," said Randolph Daar, lawyer for Jessica Sanders, one of the three persons arrested in the high profile bust.
Tainted Inc. was founded by 33-year-old Michael Martin, originally as a home operation creating chocolate truffles containing cannabis.
At the time of writing, Martin is a fugitive being pursued by the DEA.
The success of his efforts led to expand the range of products manufactured.
DEA agents made off with chocolate bars, biscuits, peanut butter, ice cream, jam, energy drinks, and rice krispy squares -- all laced with cannabis.
As well as distributing the products to medical marijuana dispensaries in California, Tainted Inc. also sold to customers in Seattle, Vancouver, British Columbia, and Amsterdam.
The bust came about as a result of a two year investigation by the DEA.
They believe that Tainted Inc. used up to four tons of chocolate over that period in the manufacture of their products.
This is not the first bust of its kind -- Kenneth Affolter is currently languishing in jail after receiving a five year sentence for masterminding a similar operation.
Although California has legalised cannabis for medical use, the DEA continues to enforce federal drug laws regardless.
"These items could have harmful effects on a user, especially the unsuspecting ones," said Javier Pena of the DEA.
"We will continue to shut down these production lines, one marijuana-candy factory at a time."
Posted in: Chemicals by bubblejam at 02:54 PM | Comments (2) | Email This Entry
Comments
I wrote a blog on this same company over a YEAR ago getting busted and closed. I don't see why it's back in the news again. If they allowed them to remain open over the last year and the co. kept up their illicit activity, you'd think it would have been picked up on sooner. But this co. was DEFINITELY in the news a year ago for the same thing.
Posted by: jaymee on October 9, 2007 12:25 AM
I think jaymee has been sampling Tainted's products a little too heavily -- if you read the article, you'll see that I refer to the Kenneth Affolter bust which was the last high profile case of this kind. I think you're confusing the two.
And if you read my article carefully you'll read the following: "The bust came about as a result of a two year investigation by the DEA." I don't think the DEA generally blow a two year investigation by busting everyone midway.
Posted by: The Mullah on October 23, 2007 12:25 PM