By Louis Chan
AsAmNews National Correspondent
Six members of two Asian American Greek organizations at the University of California at Santa Cruz have been arrested on accusations they took part in an ecstasy drug ring and of possessing $100,000 of the club drug.
All six are 21 years old and members of the Lambda Phi Epsilon fraternity and the Alpha Kappa Delta Phi sorority, according to the Santa Cruz Police Department.
They have been identified as Mariah Dremel, Benny Liu, Cesar Casil, Nathan Tieu, Hoai Nguyen and Cecilia Le.
Nguyen and Le were arrested on a charge of possession and the other four on charges of possession for sale.
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“Over the past few weeks, the Santa Cruz Police Department became aware of several packages of MDMA tablets being shipped through the US Postal Service,” the SCPD said in a statement. “The packages were shipped from overseas and were bound for three addresses in the city of Santa Cruz. The investigation revealed that the illegal drug MDMA known by its street names as Ecstasy, or Molly was being imported and shipped to a number of students at Lambda Phi Epsilon Fraternity and alpha Kappa Delta Phi Sorority members.”
Investigators from Homeland Security, U.S. Postal Service, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and Santa Cruz County Anti-Crime Team along with the Santa Cruz Police Department served search warrants at three residences.
A total of 4.1 pounds or about 5000 tablets of MDMA were seized.
The drug alters perception and awareness, as well as increasing emotions of trust and lowering inhibitions oftentimes resulting in sexual exploitation. The drug can have other adverse health effects such as elevated heart rate, blood pressure, and inability to regulate body temperature.
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