Biologist arrested for cultivating gourmet drug sold courses for traffickers

A 40-year-old biologist was arrested in Belo Horizonte (MG) with haxixe and skunk manufacturing greenhouses, variations of marijuana sold at high prices under the label of being ‘gourmet’. He negotiated the merchandise on social networks and also offered courses for traffickers who wanted to cultivate and produce drugs like him. The suspect was arrested at home, in the Dom Bosco neighborhood, in the western region of the capital, on Wednesday (3/9). According to the civil police delegate and head of the State Department for Combating Narcotics (Denarc) Sergio Belizario, the biologist used his profession’s knowledge to become a kind of ‘expert in the art of transforming marijuana into haxixe and skunk’. Belizario stated that the derived drugs have a higher THC content, with a stronger hallucinogenic effect. For production, he invested around R$ 200,000 in specialized machinery and chemicals for ‘drug enhancement’, hidden in a front company. Investigations concluded that the biologist played a significant role in the gourmet drug trafficking scheme. ‘He had greenhouses where he produced the drug, which was resold through social media to Belo Horizonte and the metropolitan region and passed on to others for resale,’ explained the delegate. The material was delivered via delivery. The biologist had his own brand, for which consumers paid a high price believing in a higher level of ‘purity’. The money raised was funneled into a ghost company to justify a ‘legal capital’. Additionally, according to the delegate, the suspect had a discreet attitude. ‘When we made the arrest, the neighbors were surprised because he is a person above suspicion, at 40 years old, who knows how to be discreet.’ This was not the first time the suspect was arrested. In 2017, the biologist was caught in a warehouse in Contagem (MG) following the same modus operandi, according to Belizario. The Civil Police had been searching for him for months until they finally found him to execute a search and seizure warrant after a complex investigation, according to the Denarc chief. Numerous individuals involved in this scheme were arrested throughout the year. In addition to the marijuana plants, greenhouses, expensive cultivation machinery, a vehicle, air conditioning units, and chemicals were seized.