Illegal Substances

Nathan Baggaley won silver twice at the 2004 Olympics and, according to the court's assessment, bought and prepared the boat for a large cocaine deal. He was not on board later, but his brother and another person were. They had tried to take over about 650 kilograms of cocaine from another ship far off the Australian coast. According to the BBC, the drugs had a market value of about 200 million Australian dollars (about 130 million euros).

However, the Australian Air Force, in cooperation with the border police, had filmed the handover from the air. In addition, a navy ship followed the criminals' boat. During the following chase on the water, video footage shows Dru Baggaley throwing numerous drug packages overboard. Baggaley now faces life in prison.

Juan Antonio Hernández, known as "Tony," has been sentenced in the United States to life in prison plus 30 years for cocaine smuggling, among other charges. The 42-year-old is the brother of the president of Honduras, Juan Orlando Hernández.

According to the prosecutor's office in New York, the convicted man's drug trafficking proceeds of at least $138.5 million (about 118 million euros) will be confiscated.

In order to allow wider use of marijuana for medical purposes, Thailand's Narcotics Control Board has voted to remove cannabis plants from the list of Category 5 narcotics.

However, growing marijuana is only allowed if a permit is granted by the FDA to ensure alignment with government agencies.

Thailand's justice minister, Somsak Thepsuthin, has stated that tests that turned purple in the presence of ketamine hydrochloride reacted the same to trisodium phosphate -- a chemical that can be used as a food additive and cleaning agent which is all that had been found so far. Previously Thailand's Office of the Narcotics Control Board had announced seizing $1 billion worth of what they thought to be ketamine.

The European Court of Justice in its current decision stated that CBD not an addictive drug in the sense of the UN Single Convention. The court argued with the current state of science that CBD has no harmful effects on human health (ECJ C-663/18 of 19.11.2020).

This decision is contrary stance of the EU Commission which argued that CBD is an addictive drug.

According to a proclamation in Thailand's new Royal Gazette, the sale and possession of 102 substances classified as Category 2 drugs by the 1979 Narcotics Act may be sold or used under very specific limitations. Possession and use will be granted to governmental organizations, approved pharmacies, and health workers such as pharmacists, dentists, and veterinarians for the purposes of producing approved medical formulas or approved research.

The regulatory shift is similar to that made in the wake of December 2018 legislation that cleared the way for medical marijuana. Included in the new regulation, which will come into effect in July 2021, are opium, fentanyl, codeine, cocaine, and other substances.

Arizona, New Jersey, South Dakota and Montana all passed legislation Tuesday permitting the possession of marijuana by adults, which means 15 states have legalized recreational weed or voted to legalize it.

Voters have approved Measure 109 that directs the Oregon Health Authority to create a state-licensed, psilocybin-assisted therapy program over the next two years. In addition, a regulation plan for the substance should be developed by the authorities as psilocybin remains a Schedule I substance under federal rules.

The measure aims to help patients with chronic mental health issues like PTSD, depression and addiction as well as reducing anxiety for patients who are dying.

The drug trade continues to flourish despite Corona and thanks to digital sales channels. In 2019, the offenses in this context continued to increase, with cocaine in particular increasing.

The German "Federal Criminal Police Office's report on drug crime 2019" shows an increase of 2.6% compared to the previous year.

Above all, the sales channels in the Darknet would take retail off the street and make investigations more difficult. The Berlin trend of so-called "coke taxis" (mobile delivery) would also increase constantly.

The federal government would like to continue to focus on prevention, especially in schools.

In 2019 Canada has revealed a program to grant Canadians an easy way to be granted a pardon if they have a criminal record for simple possession of cannabis.

Since the creation of the program, 458 people have applied for a pardon at the Parole Board of Canada (PBC). Out of these applications, 194 have been returned because of ineligibility or incomplete files. 257 have been granted and two have been discontinued. Five cases are still in the process.

In 2018 Canada has passed the Cannabis Act legalized and regulated the possession, distribution, consumption and cultivation of marijuana for recreational used.

Police and customs officers at the Port of Hamburg have seized around 1,5 tonnes of cocaine. The illegal substance was hidden in a cargo container between bags of rice.

The illegal cargo has been found and seized in June already when the container was scanned at the customs office Waltershof and was scheduled to be transferred to a different ship to Poland. The rice on the container ship came from Guyana in South America.

According to estimates, the seized cocaine has a street worth of about €300 million.