Columbia County Men Charged in Internet Bath Salts and Spice Trafficking Network
| U.S. Attorney’s Office October 25, 2013 |
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced the unsealing of a seven-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Williamsport on October 10, 2013, charging Paul Chomiak, Lindsay Lee-Lampshire, Adam Stein, and Kyle Savitski with mail fraud conspiracy, conspiracy to distribute controlled substance analogues, distribution of controlled substance analogues, conspiracy to introduce and introduction of misbranded drugs, and conspiracy to commit money laundering offenses. The indictment also charged four businesses allegedly used to commit the offenses, Reflectionz and Symplegades Requiem, both based in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, and Anima Entertainment LLC and Extelligence Internet Services, based in Kalamazoo, Michigan.
The indictment was unsealed following the arrests.
According to United States Attorney Peter J. Smith, the indictment alleges that from September 2009 through the present, Chomiak, Lee-Lampshire, Stein, and Savitski marketed and distributed controlled substance analogues and misbranded drugs, commonly referred to as “bath salts” and “spice,” using Internet websites and two stores in Bloomsburg operated as Symplegades Requiem and Reflectionz. The indictment alleges that the defendants fraudulently marketed the products as novelties not for human consumption, when in fact the products were being used to obtain the same physical effects as controlled substances.
Chomiak, age 47; Stein, age 23; and Savitski, age 23, reside in Bloomsburg. Lee-Lampshire, age 30, is a resident of Kalamazoo, Michigan.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Food and Drug Administration, the United States Postal Inspection Service, and the Columbia County Drug Task Force. Prosecution has been assigned to Assistant United States Attorney George J. Rocktashel.
Indictments and criminal informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilty is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
In this case, the maximum penalty under the federal statute is 20 years' imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances, and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public, and provide for the defendant’s educational, vocational, and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.