Japanese prosecutors indicted a civilian U.S. Navy employee on charges of smuggling psychedelic drugs into Japan by mail. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)
Japanese prosecutors indicted a civilian U.S. Navy employee Tuesday on charges of smuggling psychedelic drugs into Japan by mail.
David Adam Todd, 44, is accused of violating Japan’s Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Act and Customs Law, a spokesman for the Yokohama District Public Prosecutors Office said by phone Tuesday.
A spokesman for the Kanagawa Prefectural Police identified Todd in January as a ship repairman.
Prosecutors allege Todd mailed capsules containing about 131 grams of powder with psilocybin and psilocin, along with about 146 grams of solid items containing psilocin, the prosecutors’ spokesman said. By comparison, a bar of soap or a medium-sized apple weighs about 130 grams.
The substances are naturally occurring psychoactive compounds found in psychedelic mushrooms, also known as magic mushrooms, and are classified as narcotics under Japanese law.
A person convicted of importing narcotics faces between one and 10 years in prison under the Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Act.
Todd is accused of coordinating with an unknown accomplice to mail the drugs from a U.S. post office around July 22, the spokesman said. The package arrived at a Japanese airport between July 23 and 26.
Customs inspectors discovered the narcotics at a Yokohama post office, police said.
The drugs were sent through what police described as “unofficial military mail,” though it was not immediately clear whether that referred to the Military Postal Service Agency.
Todd was arrested Jan. 14 at his home in Hayama, about 5 miles west of Yokosuka Naval Base, police said.
Some Japanese government officials must speak to the media on condition of anonymity.
Randall Baucom, a spokesman for the U.S. Naval Ship Repair Facility and Japan Regional Maintenance Center, confirmed by email Jan. 15 that a civilian employee was under investigation for importing narcotics. He did not immediately respond Wednesday to a request for additional information.
