FILE – In this Feb. 20, 2014, File photo, a patron exhales vapor from an e-cigarette at the Henley Vaporium in New York. The first peek at a major study of how Americans smoke suggests many use combinations of products, and often e-cigarettes are part of the mix. It’s a preliminary finding, but it highlights some key questions as health officials assess electronic cigarettes. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II, File) A grocery on Reed Pond Road in Whitfield County has been busted and a man was arrested on charges of selling Schedule 1 narcotics for use in e-cigarettes.
In a news release Thursday, the county sheriff’s office said it received information in October and conducted an investigation, including undercover purchases. Samples were submitted to the GBI Crime Lab for analysis. The crime lab recently informed the sheriff’s office that the substance had been identified as a synthetic Schedule 1 illegal narcotic.
Investigators also learned that the money the suspect was making from selling the substance was being deposited into two different bank accounts.
On Wednesday, members of the sheriff’s office and the Drug Enforcement Administration executed search warrants at S&L Grocery, 902 Reed Pond Road, and a home at 2351 Clifton Circle, as well as two bank accounts. Investigators seized several bottles of the e-cig synthetic liquid, three firearms, three vehicles, and approximately $50,000 in cash.
Leonel Lopez-Martinez, 34, was arrested and charged with sale of Schedule 1 narcotics.