BRITONS CHARGED AFTER NARCOTICS SEIZED AT AIRPORT

Flight Originated in United Kingdom, Where Khat Is
Legal

Two Britons have been charged with importing a controlled substance
after border agents at the Calgary airport seized 31 kilograms of khat
- -- a drug that's allowed in many other countries but is illegal in
Canada. Canada Border Services Agency officers made the find Saturday
after inspecting the luggage of two women who arrived on a flight from
London, England.

Khat is a plant that can have a mild hallucinogenic effect when its
leaves are chewed. It's legal in the United Kingdom, where the flight
originated.

But once someone enters Canada, the only laws that apply to khat are
ours, said an RCMP spokesman.

"Anyone coming here has to understand . . . what may be legal in other
countries may not be legal here," said Sgt. Patrick Webb.

Khat is grown mainly in Kenya, Ethiopia, Yemen and Somalia. Police
said demand for it here is fuelled mainly by immigrants from those
countries.

"We're seeing immigrants from Africa who have had (khat) in the past,"
Webb said.

Chewing khat can produce feelings of euphoria and increased alertness,
but authorities warn that excessive consumption can cause slurred
speech, staggering and violence.

Webb estimated local authorities make 10 or 12 khat seizures every
year, and that demand may be growing as the local population of people
from countries where khat is common increases.

Last month, Calgary had a similar incident with doda, a drug made from
dried and ground seed pods taken from opium poppies grown in countries
such as Afghanistan and India.

Police seized 13 kilograms of doda and 60 kilograms of unprocessed
seed pods from a northeast Calgary grocery store selling South Asian
specialties.

The difference, however, is several nations have signed a United
Nations treaty that makes doda also illegal in its countries of origin.

In connection with Saturday's seizure at the airport, Melinda
Zsuzsanna Meszaros, 36, and Katalin Racsko, 56, both of London, have
been charged with importation of a controlled substance.

They appeared in court Tuesday, and were remanded in custody.