Police: “significant” amount of synthetic marijuana at Columbia gas station
ABC 17 News confirmed police found a “significant” amount of synthetic marijuana during a raid on Friday at the Ultramart Shell gas station off Paris Road near the Business Loop in northeast Columbia.
Several members of the Columbia police department were at the scene.
Lt. Jason Jones tells ABC 17 News they will take the samples to the Missouri State Highway Patrol crime lab. After that, arrests and charges could follow if the possible drugs test positive.
Officers searched the convenience store for two hours, arriving at the store at the corner of Paris Rd. and Whitegate Drive shortly after 4 p.m. Lt. Jones said the owner and few employees present at the time cooperated with police as they served the search warrant.
Police began investigating the store several months ago, when Lt. Jones said they began to see a spike in medical emergencies.
“We started to get some information about people having some medical issues after ingesting K2,” he said, using the common nickname for synthetic marijuana.
ABC 17 News has highlighted the difficulty law enforcement experiences in making a case against potential sellers of synthetic drugs. While many agencies carry equipment to test suspected drugs on scene, makers of synthetic marijuana can change the formula quickly to avoid detection.
No one was arrested Friday night, and people continued to shop at the store after police left shortly after 6 p.m. Lt. Jones said any potential arrests or criminal charges would come after police received the Highway Patrol’s lab test, and only if the samples turned out positive for a synthetic drug.
