Weemes                     Burdine

A Hopkinsville man was arrested early yesterday morning on Burglary charges for allegedly breaking into a convenience store and stealing a synthetic drug.

Police were called to the Scott’s Market on E. 9^th Street around 1:30 after someone broke the glass out of the front door and went inside to steal $60 worth of what’s called “Botanical Potpourri.”

Using surveillance footage, police were able to name 34-year old Jerrod Weemes as a suspect and arrested him a little over three hours later. With Weemes was 33-year old Kelly Burdine, who was arrested on the strength of a warrant for Failure to Appear and for Possession of Marijuana and drug paraphernalia.

It certainly wasn’t the first crime committed in Christian County dealing with synthetic drugs, which are increasingly becoming a larger issue locally and across the country.

Botanical Potpourri is a “marijuana-looking substance marketed in a shiny red and black packet,” according to a recent story in the Des Moines Register. The story was written featuring Iowa resident Samantha Eckstein, whose son purchased the substance on Nov. 30 hoping to get high, only to nearly choke to death on his own vomit.

The Kentucky General Assembly will likely pass more sweeping laws regarding synthetic drugs in the upcoming session in an effort to get ahead of “basement chemists” who continue packaging the items as “not for human consumption” to get around FDA checks.

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12/18/2011/am