THE KHAT SMUGGLERS
 |
| Inside Out's Paul Ross shops for the
plant in the UK |
Inside Out investigates how young British men
- many of them from Kent - are risking jail by smuggling a plant
that is legal in the UK into the USA, where it is sold as a Class
1 narcotic.
Khat can
be bought in the UK at specialist market stalls for around 拢5 a
bunch. It is popular among Britain's Somali community, and 90% of Somali
men reportedly chew the leaves regularly.
A flowering
shrub native to north-east Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, fresh khat
leaves are glossy and crimson-brown, resembling withered basil. Users
claim the drug lifts spirits, sharpens thinking and increases energy.
The effects
are weaker than cocaine or methamphetamine. But khat can
still trigger paranoia and hallucinations, and may even lead to mouth
cancer.
Presenter
Paul Ross, under the close supervision of leading khat expert, Dr. Iain
Murray-Lyon, tried khat himself.
He grimaced
as he chewed the leaves -"astringent" - and after about an hour
spoke of the effects: "I feel trembly and a bit hyper like I've had
too much coffee and a bit hot."
Khat is legal
in Britain but banned in Europe, America and Canada.
 |
| Attorney Elizabeth
Pruser |
Over the
last six months over 20 UK citizens have been jailed in America for attempting
to smuggle Khat into the U.S.
In America, bunches of Khat sell for 10 times their UK
price. Highly organised gangs in Britain are making 拢150 million
a year smuggling Khat into the U.S.
American Defense Attorney, Elizabeth Pruser has represented
a number of British people jailed for attempting to smuggle Khat. Elizabeth
works for the Legal Aid Society and works with indigent individuals.
Of the 6 Khat cases Elizabeth has dealt with all of the
detainees were white males. All unemployed, most of them in their early
20's. One was in his 50's. Most of the men she's defended came from Deal
in Kent.
The father of one of the men told Inside Out: "It
was quarter to two in the morning, we were fast asleep in bed when the
phone rang and this gentleman said he was a police officer at JFK airport
in New York and he said he'd arrested our son and had him in custody.
"He was looking at 6 years to life in prison."
It's as serious as smuggling in heroin
Elizabeth told Inside Out: "They all say 'It's legal
in the UK, and that they were under the assumption it 's legal over here
too'."
This view was echoed by the mother of one Kentish man
arrested in America.
"I was just thinking what have you done, when am
I ever going to see you again, are you ever going to come home? It was
awful," she said.
"He was very upset, nearly in tears and we did actually
have several conversations where he was in tears and obviously he realised
he was in a lot of trouble.
"I was just thinking to myself - this is the worst
place he could have gone to, they have the death sentence in America."
Why is Khat illegal in the States?
There are two substances in Khat which are classified
as controlled substances in the U.S. These are Cathinone and Cathine.
Bringing Khat into America would carry the same sentencing
as bringing in cocaine or heroin.
Khat leaves lose their potency after 48 hours, so for
the smugglers it has become a race against time.
Drugs 'mules' are drafted in to satisfy the weekend
rush
Most couriers travel to the U.S. on Thursdays, Fridays
and Saturdays to satisfy higher weekend demand. The plants are shipped
out within hours of arriving in the UK.
 |
| Special Agent
Manifase |
Elizabeth says: "These people are not criminals;
they are just kids trying to make a bit of money who are na茂ve.
"When I first meet them they are stunned and very
scared. They don't even know who they are supposed to be bringing the
drug to."
Thomas E. Manifase, a special agent with the US Dept of
Homeland Security adds: "I can tell you we are taking a real hard
look at the people who smuggle this in to the US. We are trying to find
out who the people are who are behind this.
"We are looking at the funding, the money, where's
it going? It could be being used to fund terrorism because it's being
sent back to countries that support terrorism like Yemen and others.
"What the Khat smugglers are looking for are non-African
people to carry the drug as they feel they get less scrutiny, white caucasian
male and females. They are surprised when we arrest them as they've been
told it's NOT illegal by the smugglers."
Although she has only defended six individuals, Elizabeth
estimates there have been around 2 dozen cases of Khat smuggling over
the last 6 months.
 |
| Inside
Riker Island jail |
The first case Elizabeth dealt with the man was fined
$2,000.
Elizabeth advises these clients to plead guilty. The discretionary plea
offer set by the prosecutors office results in the men serving 60 days
in Riker Island jail.
But Kenneth Holder, Chief of Narcotic Trials Division
for the DA's office in Queen's says importing Khat is classified as an
A2 felony.
So individuals could serve a lot longer than the 60 days.
If the prosecutor's office decided to indict everybody
they could sit in jail for up to a year prior to going to trial. If you
went to trial you could be convicted of 3 years up to life imprisonment.
A trade in death
Over 20 Britons have been arrested in the US since the
beginning of the year for trafficking Khat.
The Khat trade, controlled by a few UK based criminal
syndicates, has also been linked to murder.
Businessman Amarjit Chohan, who vanished along with his
entire family in February, 2003, was found washed up in the sea close
to Bournemouth in May.
His wife, two sons and mother in law remain missing, presumed
dead.
Police believe that Chohan may have been involved in importing
Khat and smuggling it to America. | 
