Steve Robinson - What If China’s Secret Weapon Was Sold at Your Local Gas Station | SRS #243

The illicit drug 70, a synthetic opioid more potent than morphine, is widely available at gas stations and convenience stores, fueling a growing, unregulated market alongside a massive, Chinese Communist Party-linked illegal marijuana industry in the U.S.

• 70, a potent synthetic opioid, is readily available at gas stations and convenience stores, posing an unquantified addiction and overdose risk.

• Chinese organized crime, tied to the CCP, is systematically exploiting marijuana legalization loopholes and engaging in human trafficking to cultivate and distribute pesticide-laced cannabis.

• Current U.S. regulatory and law enforcement systems are unprepared to combat these sophisticated, financially driven, and politically connected operations, allowing their continued expansion.

Synthetic opioid 70, referred to as 'gas station heroin,' is readily accessible in convenience stores and highly potent, posing significant public health and regulatory challenges. This unregulated market is intertwined with large-scale illegal Chinese marijuana operations across the U.S., particularly in Maine and Oklahoma, generating billions in illicit cash. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is directly connected to these grows, which exploit human trafficking victims and spread pesticide-laden products, contributing to a national security threat largely unaddressed by federal authorities.

Unregulated Synthetic Opioids

• 00:00:39 The government is significantly behind in regulating new substances like 70, which is a toxic chemical widely available at gas stations and convenience stores. The FDA has recommended scheduling 70, but the process is lengthy, allowing these substances to circulate freely. Law enforcement often discovers these drugs during unrelated raids and struggles to identify or test for them, leading many deaths to be misattributed to other opioid overdoses.

70 vs. Bath Salts

• 00:03:10 70 is comparable to 'bath salts' in its unregulated nature and the chemical 'whack-a-mole' game regulators face. As regulators make one molecule illegal, chemists in China, the U.S., and Mexico slightly alter its structure, creating a new, legal, but often more complex and harmful molecule that produces a similar high. This ongoing chemical escalation makes effective regulation incredibly difficult and continuously introduces new, untested substances into the market.

The Nature of 70

• 00:04:47 70 is a lab-made synthetic opioid derived from the Southeast Asian kratom plant, which undergoes an elaborate chemical process. Despite its 'natural' origin claims, it is a synthetic drug far more potent than morphine, readily available at gas stations as drink mixes or pills. Senator Mark Wayne Mullen estimated the 70 industry is already worth $9 billion, highlighting its rapid and expansive growth.

Chinese Organized Crime

• 00:09:55 Chinese organized crime activities in Maine, New York, California, and Oklahoma are directly linked to the Chinese government, often operating through 'benevolent associations' that are front groups for the Chinese consulate and part of the CCP's 'United Front' for infiltration and espionage. Investigations have uncovered properties near U.S. military facilities tied to these operations, suggesting a coordinated effort beyond mere criminal enterprise.

Human Trafficking & Exploitation

• 00:16:52 The Chinese marijuana operations in Maine largely rely on human trafficking, bringing individuals from China through Mexico to the U.S., confiscating their passports, and forcing them into indentured servitude at cannabis grows. These workers are victims, compelled to work off 'snake head debt,' and are largely kept isolated, unable to communicate in English or seek help.

Illegal Marijuana Operations

• 00:25:31 Chinese cartels are running illegal marijuana grows that far exceed legal plant limits, sometimes by thousands of times, in properties ranging from double-wide trailers to massive factories. These operations use commercial-grade electricity and numerous heat pumps to maintain optimal growing conditions, often involving the use of banned Chinese pesticides that contaminate the product and pose health risks to consumers.

Exploiting Loopholes and Money

• 00:39:00 The Chinese cartels exploit loopholes in legal marijuana systems and the 'hemp loophole,' which allows actual cannabis to be sold as 'THCA' in prohibition states, generating billions in untaxed cash. This money is then laundered through various means, including real estate purchases (often 20% over asking price in cash) and lawyer trust accounts, enabling the rapid expansion of their operations without attracting significant law enforcement attention.

Regulatory Failures & Future

• 01:09:16 Current U.S. regulatory and law enforcement approaches are ill-equipped to handle the scale and sophistication of these transnational criminal organizations. Local authorities often treat these as traditional drug busts, ignoring the broader national security implications and the financial networks involved. Without a unified national framework, targeted efforts against money laundering, and recognition of the CCP's involvement, the problem will continue to escalate, with new synthetic drugs emerging as older ones are regulated.