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Two Plead Guilty In Largest Synthetic Drug Bust In New England History

U.S. Attorney's Office, District of N.H.

Two New Hampshire men have pleaded guilty to trafficking a huge amount of synthetic cannabis, also called spice, valued at about $4 million.

One year ago, undercover officers traced spice being sold in convenience stores in Hooksett and Londonderry back to two men producing the stuff at three locations in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Officers found 3,000 pounds of spice, scales, boxes of empty packages, and residue of a controlled substance called AB-FUBINACA.

After pleading guilty, defendants Kyle Hurley, 32, and Robert Costello, 71, could face decades in prison.

"This law enforcement action really put a dent in the manufacturing and distribution of these toxic substances and took this stuff off the street and promoted public health and safety," says U.S. Attorney John Kacavas.

Kacavas says this was the largest synthetic drug bust in New England history, and the twelfth largest in U.S. history.

Before joining NHPR in August 2014, Jack was a freelance writer and radio reporter. His work aired on NPR, BBC, Marketplace and 99% Invisible, and he wrote for the Christian Science Monitor and Northern Woodlands.
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