CNN
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Russian customs service detained a 28-year-old US citizen at Vnukovo Airport in Moscow for possession of cannabis-laced marmalade, according to Russian state media agency TASS.
“On February 7, Vnukovo customs officers detained a 28-year-old US citizen who was carrying marmalade with cannabinoids in his luggage,” Russian customs service told TASS.
The report does not name the man in question, but states that authorities have opened a criminal case against him with possible penalties ranging from 5 to 10 years in prison, along with a fine of up to 1 million rubles ($10,884).
Court records found by CNN indicate authorities filed the case on February 8. The US citizen appeared in court on February 10, where a judge confirmed his detention. A legal code listed in the record indicated the US citizen is accused of “smuggling narcotic drugs”.
CNN has reached out to the US State Department and the US Embassy in Moscow about the citizen. A spokesperson from the US Embassy in Moscow told Reuters on Friday that in light of “privacy restrictions,” they had “nothing to share at this point.”
According to TASS’ reporting, customs stopped the US citizen after he arrived on a flight from Istanbul. When a drug-sniffing dog named Eureka flagged one of his bags, inspectors reportedly found two plastic jars and a Ziploc bag with candy inside.
The man told authorities that the items were prescribed by a doctor in the US.
Chemical analysis, according to customs, revealed they “contained narcotic substances of the cannabinoid group,” TASS reported.