| nycalt |
| () |
| 05/27/04 12:01 AM |
 Re: DEA visit in a nutshell NEWS!
|
Quote:
A reliable, honest, senior member on abother board was visited by the DEA for attempting to purchase a small order from an IOP. He never got the meds or any letter. He was warned that buying meds from IOPs is ILLEGAL especially any codeine type products. The agent also said they are looking to go after domestic OPs as well...even ones with phone consults/records required. He was told they are watching.
PLEASE folks, I am not lying and I know this person is not either. DO NOT order from IOPs. If you do, you are taking a risk. It is not legal in any way, shape or form.
I am perplexed as to why he said they were going to go after the domestic OPs that have strict requirements though, seeing there is no clear cut law against them.
I have never ordered from an IOP (thank God) but I am going to look for a pain management clinic locally. I have had it with all of this. The recent news has been too upsetting. I have a feeling that this year will bring the end of OPs as we know them. It's going to be rough for the millions of real CP sufferers that can't get help any other way. I wish I could be more positive, but I can't.
Wow, relax. I think you are being way too paranoid.
First of all, it is only illegal to order from an IOP if the med in question is a controlled substance. Otherwise, FDA regulations are murky and the fact is no one ever got arrested or visited by the DEA for ordering a noncontrolled substance from an IOP. Never.
While I am not questioning your story, this is very, very, very rare indeed.
Do you realize how many packages flow through U.S. customs on a daily basis? With terrorism, bombs, suspicious powders, etc. do you really think they are looking for 50 Valiums? They simply don’t have the manpower to open every package. So they look for certain things.
The seizure rate is like 1% - 3% for most med shipments. Of course, there are target drugs, but your risk of seizures is really quite low for your average schedule III/IV meds.
If the guy in your story never got the meds, how can the DEA prove he ordered them? He could deny the whole thing, thank the DEA for their concern but refer any further questioning to his attorney. End of story.
If they show up to your door with the meds in hand, you can claim you never ordered them and have no idea why that package was sent to you.
I actually think in some ways ordering from an IOP, where the Fed’s have no jurisdiction to subpoena your records as to how many times and what you ordered, shut them down, etc, is safer than ordering from a domestic OP.
They can watch domestic OP’s, keep track of orders, etc. It’s a lot easier to prove with a domestic OP that you actually ordered the med in question and how many and how often.
In general, the worst that will happen with an IOP is a seizure letter. I know someone who works for customs. There is no “flagging” of people who receive seizure letters and the only time any further action is taken is when the periodic “watch notices” are issued by the DEA. In other words, they ask customs to alert them when they seize certain items.
This is usually because the DEA is aware of large importing of some substance going on in a certain area. Since the law in importation seizures puts the burden of proof on the shipper to prove the item was requested by the person it is being shipped to, and since most reputable IOP’s know not to tell the DEA anything (why would they?), there is little to worry about.
The occasional threatening DEA visit aside (and these are rare), unless you’re importing large quantities of controlled substances you have little to worry about.
