Seabrook smoke shop owner gets 4 years in prison for selling deadly fake weed

SEABROOK — A Seabrook businessman was sentenced to four years in prison for his involvement in a nationwide conspiracy to distribute illegal synthetic cannabinoids, known on the street as fake weed or spice.

William Walsh, 57, was sentenced last week in federal U.S. District Court in Alexandria Virginia after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute synthetic cannabinoids.

Judge Rossie Alston sentenced him to 48 months imprisonment, followed by 24 months of home confinement, followed by three years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay a $50,000 fine, according to Karoline “Kari” Foote, public affairs director for Virginia U.S. Attorney’s Office.

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The sentence comes after a negotiated plea deal with prosecutors who in exchange for Walsh's cooperation in the investigation agreed to drop the more serious charge of conspiracy to distribute synthetic cannabinoids, resulting in death. If convicted of that crime, Walsh would have faced a life sentence in federal prison and a fine as high as $1 million.

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Walsh managed Seabrook-based smoke shops, Up ‘N Smoke and The Smoking Monkey, as well as the adult entertainment venue Leather and Lace at the time of his arrest. His plea indicates his confirmation that he purchased nearly $200,000 worth of spice from a California-based wholesale spice manufacturer, selling it to customers. According to Walsh’s indictment, one of those customers is alleged to have died from a resulting overdose.

Known commonly as spice or fake weed, the synthetic cannabinoids are sold under various names like Mad Hatter, K-2 and Bizarro. They are marketed as an herbal incense meant to be burned, with notice printed on packages that it is not for human consumption. However, fake weed is most often smoked, producing an intoxicating high more dangerous and addictive than marijuana, due to the chemicals involved.

The federal government has banned a number of the dangerous chemical substances sprayed on fake weed.

How investigation went from Virginia to NH

The case was part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces investigation, which investigates the highest-level drug traffickers, as well as money launderers.

The case began in April 2017, when several individuals in Virginia were admitted to an emergency room following their use of synthetic cannabinoids.

Federal investigators tracked the sale of the illegal substances to a gas station, where a person told federal agents he bought the illegal substance from a website called "Aroma Superstore."

The website was operated by California residents Joseph Ruis, Kimberly Drumm and Bonnie Turner, also arrested in the case.

Investigators from multiple agencies spent years gathering evidence on this case using confidential informants who purchased spice via the Internet. Investigators analyzed the finances of Ruis, Drumm and Turner and a network of 11 websites – including “Aroma Superstore” – authorities say were under their control.

According to court documents, it was their financial analysis that drew investigators’ attention to Walsh, when they discovered he was their second-largest purchaser. According to court documents, from January 2017 through April 2019, more than $180,000 worth of checks signed by Walsh for the purchase of spice were deposited into bank accounts controlled by the three Californians.

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Federal documents indicate additional evidence was provided by an undercover investigation conducted by Seabrook police of the sale of synthetic cannabinoids from Walsh’s Seabrook businesses to consumers, including one resulting in a fatality.

Seabrook police were told by a confidential informant that the deceased had smoked “Mad Hatter Blueberry” spice, purchased from the Smoking Monkey for $60, according to court documents. The informant claimed he had also purchased the same product from the Smoking Monkey and overdosed himself, resulting in his hospitalization in July 2018.

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In May 2019, Seabrook police received a call from a distressed parent, saying her son had overdosed on synthetic cannabinoids, according to court documents, and a family credit card indicated a $15 charge from the Smoking Monkey.

Raid at Seabrook shops result in seizure of 3,600 packs of spice 

Walsh became aware of his pending criminal problems on Nov. 14, 2019, when federal authorities raided his three businesses and his home. According to federal documents, agents seized $670,522 in cash from Walsh’s residence, as well as a total of $6,160 at his businesses. Authorities also discovered and seized more than 3,600 packets of spice from his stores. 

Walsh was arrested and taken into custody on March 12, 2020, after indictments were handed up by a federal grand jury in the U.S Court’s District of Eastern Virginia.