ALLEGED 'POT' GUMBALL DISTRIBUTOR ARRESTED

ARLINGTON, Va. - The Arlington County Police Department in Virginia
said it might have found the man who distributed marijuana-filled
gumballs to Howard County.

Police arrested and charged Paul C. Cofer, 20, of Arlington, with
drug possession with intent to distribute July 22 after finding
"hundreds" of yellow smiley-face gumballs in his apartment, some of
which were filled with marijuana compound.

"Our concern is obviously that gumballs are appealing to young
children, and we don't want these to harm anyone," said Detective
Steve Gomez of the Arlington police force.

Gomez said authorities are unsure if Cofer was distributing the drugs
up to Maryland, though the gumballs seem identical to those
confiscated in Ellicott City.

"It appears he was turning the unaltered gumballs into the laced
gumballs himself," Gomez said.

"They look like the ones seen in Howard County, but I don't know if
this guy was connected there or not."

Howard County police said they are aware of the situation.

"We're working to determine if they are related," said officer
Jennifer Reidy, a Howard County police spokeswoman. "We can't tell for sure."

Howard County police arrested and charged three 17-year-old students
at Ellicott City's Howard High School in January after confiscating
the yellow gumballs called 'Greenades.'

The Examiner on Wednesday first reported on the federal Drug
Enforcement Administration's bulletin, alerting its agents to be on
the lookout for marijuana distributed in such a way.

The instructions on the foil of the gumballs found at Howard High
told users to chew for 30 minutes to one hour "before you would like
receive your high" and to "chew for as long as possible, then swallow."

The gumballs in Virginia had a new and different packaging, Gomez said.

Drug enforcement agents, Maryland State Police and Howard County
police all said they had not seen drugs transported in such a way before.

Gomez described the packaging as 'very ingenious.'