ETHIOPIAN CHARGED OVER KHAT IMPORT

Addictive Khat Not Illegal In East Africa

A 37-year-old Ethiopian immigrant has been charged with importing a drug
banned in Canada, but so common in East Africa it's chewed by children and
distributed free.

It's called khat, and yesterday city police and Canada Customs put 21
kilograms of the dark brown, leafy natural stimulant on display. They
seized it Aug. 21 after Canada Post inspectors in Montreal intercepted a
bundle of the freeze-dried leaves that had been mailed to Winnipeg from
Djibouti, a city on the Gulf of Aden.

Police and Canada Customs officials say it's the largest seizure of the
addictive drug in Manitoba, and was likely to be repackaged and sold here.
Similar seizures have been made in Toronto and Montreal, where there are
large Yemeni, Ethiopian and Somali communities.

Investigators also seized $3,500 in cash and 23 one-ounce baggies of khat
- -- pronounced "cot" -- from a Young Street apartment, the home of the man
alleged to be trafficking in the substance.

The suspect was unavailable, but his girlfriend said yesterday khat is
widely used in Africa by people of all ages.

"In my country, it's free," the woman said. "Everybody has it." Khat is a
natural stimulant from the Catha edulis plant, which grows in East Africa
and Southern Arabia.

Fresh leaves contain an ingredient known as cathinone, an amphetamine-like
chemical. For centuries, it has been chewed or brewed into a tea. It
produces a feeling of exultation and clarity of thought. It also boosts energy.

Side effects include grandiose delusions, insomnia and increased heart rate.

The khat mailed to Winnipeg was freeze-dried to retain its potency; once
leaves dry out the level of cathinone deteriorates.

Mike Schnerch, chief of intelligence for Canada Customs in Manitoba, said
the khat seizure was the largest ever in Winnipeg.

Schnerch said it's not known if the suspect has received other packages of
khat in the mail prior to Wednesday's arrest. He also said there have been
about 300 seizures of khat in Canada over the past few years.

In many countries, khat is not considered a street drug, but it was banned
in Canada in 1997 under the then-new Controlled Drugs and Substances Act.
It's also illegal in the United States, but enforcement in both countries
has been sporadic. In some North American cities, it's openly sold in East
African stores.

The street price for a handful of khat is between $50 and $80.

While considered culturally acceptable by many East Africans, much like
drinking coffee, some experts say khat is highly addictive and can lead to
criminal behaviour.

The suspect's girlfriend said her boyfriend came to Canada about two years
ago and settled in Winnipeg. She has been in Canada for almost a year, also
coming from Ethiopia.

She said she and her boyfriend do not know why police raided their
apartment, posing as postal agents delivering the bundle of khat.

"We do not know why this is happening," she said.

Fahmi Beker has been charged with numerous possession and trafficking
offences under the CDSA.