Counterfeit marijuana products have recently been spotted in the Jackson Metro community.
Empty marijuana vape cartridges made to look like name brand products are being sold at convenience stores in the metro area. The products are clones of the cartridges from a legitimate marijuana dispensary, except they are left empty. Since they are not filled with THC or any other oil, they can be sold. Once they are purchased, they can be filled with a cheaper product and sold as if they were legitimate products smuggled over state lines.
The Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics (MBN) confirmed that there has been an increase in counterfeit vapes made to look like they came from California.
In 2020, MBN reported 36 cases where over 1,200 cartridges were seized. In some cases, the potent opioid fentanyl was found in the oils in the cartridges.
CBD oil has been counterfeited also. CBD oil is a popular legal product of marijuana. According to the bureau, there have been cases when CBD oil tested for higher levels of marijuana than consumers were led to believe.
“We’re tracing some of these businesses back and seeing that they are located in someone’s garage,” said Colonel Eugene Williams.
Other counterfeited drugs have a history of killing Mississippians; as recent as February, a man died from taking fentanyl disguised as a less potent, doctor-prescribed opioid.
Counterfeit drugs are becoming a viable market for people looking to make money. Street drugs have always had the potential to be laced, but recently the increase in counterfeit drugs has begun to resemble the increase in deaths from counterfeit drugs.
Fake vape cartridges and fake pills sell because they are clones of well known name brands, like the San Francisco based recreational marijuana dispensary, “Cookies,” or the doctor prescribed painkiller Percocet.
