Lehigh man charged in marijuana seizure
Authorities said he ran operation from portion of rented storage facility in Berks County
A Lehigh County man is accused of running a large-scale illegal drug operation out of a self-storage facility in northern Berks County where investigators said they seized 303 pounds of marijuana, 15 pounds of cannabis wax, 4 pounds of magic mushrooms and large amounts of intoxicating vape and edible products in a raid last week.
Vice and narcotics detectives from state police at Bethlehem teamed with the Berks County district attorney’s Drug Task Force to file the charges this week against 36-year-old Andrew K. Kacsur. The charges came five days after state police raided the storage facility on Hex Highway in Tilden Township, and Kacsur’s home in Emmaus.
Kacsur, 36, faces multiple counts of possessing and intending to deliver a controlled substance. He was sent to Berks County jail under $1 million bail following arraignment Tuesday before District Judge Kim L. Bagenstose in Hamburg.
According to the probable cause affidavit:
On Feb. 16, state police vice detectives set up surveillance at Kacsur’s home in the 300 block of South 12th Street and Edge Self Storage, 725 Hex Way, where Kacsur rented the first-floor warehouse for his packaging and distribution operation. A woman and Kacsur were detained when they entered the warehouse about 1:30 p.m.
The woman was interviewed and told investigators that she works for Kacsur doing tasks such as making boxes and labeling boxes in the warehouse. She said the boxes in the car that she brought from the house contained glass jars that Kacsur used to package his product in the warehouse.
She said Kacsur rents storage units elsewhere in the facility.
During the search of the warehouse, investigators found large quantities of marijuana and marijuana-derivative products continuing THC, the chemical in marijuana that makes you high, including THC oil, edibles and wax, and packaging materials.
The search of the storage unit revealed more marijuana and cannabis products.
From Kacsur’s home investigators seized three firearms, bundles of money, marijuana, psilocybin mushrooms and cannabis wax.
Also seized were 866 THC vape cartridges, 220 units of THC edibles, 372 psilocybin candy bars, three bottles of liquid lysergic acid diethylamide (a hallucinogenic substance commonly known as acid), 450 2-ounce THC drinks and packaging materials.
“Evidence from inside the warehouse showed that Kacsur was attempting to make his own THC oil and vape cartridges” the affidavit concluded. “It is the expert opinion of both affiants that Andrew Kacsur was using the storage facilities at 725 Hex Highway, Tilden Township, Berks County, to run a large-scale drug operation while using his residence as a location to store financial gains from the drug sales.”