KHAT GROWER CLAIMS MEDICINAL USE

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) The first person in this country arrested for growing
a rare and exotic East African stimulant claimed on Thursday he was
cultivating the plant for medicinal purposes.

Musa Ahmed Gelan, 40, of Prunedale, pleaded innocent in U.S. District Court
to manufacturing a controlled substance known as khat, pronounced "cot." His
lawyer, Donald Foley, said Gelan was growing khat to help control his
diabetes.

"He had no idea anything was illegal about this," Foley said. "The plants
are part of his ethnic background."

If convicted, Gelan could face up to 20 years in prison.

The leafy, reddish khat is popular with people in Ethiopia, Somalia and
Tanzania, and the Middle Eastern country of Yemen, Gelan's homeland. When
chewed, users say it produces a mild euphoria.

Khat is illegal in the United States because it contains an amphetamine-like
substance in the same category as heroin.

Gelan was arrested in September when federal and state authorities raided
his quarter-acre field and seized more than 1,000 plants. Drug enforcement
officials said it was the first outdoor khat plantation discovered in the
country.

There is evidence that khat is making its way into the United States.

Two years ago, a London man was caught smuggling 70 pounds of khat through
Pittsburgh International Airport.

In April, a New York man was arrested during a traffic stop in New Jersey
after police found a suitcase with 100 pounds of khat in his car.

Checked-by: Rolf Ernst