A criminal case has been submitted to the court against a group of three individuals accused of producing and transporting large batches of psychotropic substances. According to the investigation, a full-fledged clandestine laboratory operated in Latgale, where amphetamine, mephedrone, and other drugs were produced.
The Prosecutor's Office has submitted a criminal case to the Riga District Court against an organized group accused of the illegal trafficking of psychotropic substances in particularly large volumes.
The case involves two men and a woman. The investigation believes that the group was engaged in the production, storage, transportation, and preparation for sale of various narcotic substances.
According to the Prosecutor's Office, one of the defendants, along with accomplices, organized the operation of a clandestine laboratory in the Augšdaugava region. For this purpose, equipment, chemicals, and materials necessary for drug production were purchased.
The investigation claims that the laboratory produced amphetamine, methamphetamine, mephedrone, and α-pyrrolidinovalerophenone. In total, according to police data, at least 13.7 kilograms of psychotropic substances were produced there.
Such volumes are usually regarded by law enforcement as production aimed not at personal use but at further distribution. This is why the charges are related not only to storage but also to preparation for the sale of drugs.
During the investigation, the State Police discovered and seized the produced substances directly in the laboratory. Additionally, at one of the defendants' homes in the Stopiņi region, nearly half a kilogram of a substance with a high cocaine content, as well as marijuana, was found.
A separate episode is related to the transportation of drugs. According to the investigation, one of the defendants transported psychotropic substances from the laboratory and handed over the vehicle to another group member in Daugavpils. Later, the police stopped the car.
More than 18 kilograms of hidden psychotropic substances were found in the vehicle. Both men are alleged to have been under the influence of drugs at the time of their arrest.
The investigation also believes that one of the men and the woman participated in the legalization of criminally obtained money. Part of the materials in the case has been allocated to a separate proceeding.
In recent years, Latvian law enforcement agencies have increasingly reported the detection of clandestine drug laboratories outside of Riga — including in small towns and rural areas. Such operations try to place themselves away from public attention.
The case will now be considered by the court, which will decide on the guilt of the defendants.
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