Police spent most of the day Friday seizing boxes of suspected synthetic drugs and drug paraphernalia from the Magical Incense Shop in Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County. When they were done, they boarded the shop and shut it down.
The borough’s police chief, David Spotts, says the store has caused issues in the county for years.
In search warrant affidavits released Friday, police document 66 incidents they say are tied to the shop, including break-ins and drug overdoses.
In one case, police say a woman overdosed on synthetic drugs and took 80 Benadryl in an effort to treat herself.
The chief spent some time Friday guarding the main entrance, trying to keep potential customers from entering.
“At least a dozen people came up to me while there’s police cars parked, people in uniform, trying to open the door. One guy even reached over my shoulder trying to open the door,” said Spotts.
District Attorney David Freed filed a civil lawsuit against the store’s owner Ted Zeiders. A judge ordered the store remain closed until a hearing Tuesday.
Police also searched Zeiders’ home and froze his bank account. Zeiders declined to comment on the case.
Police have not filed criminal charges. Freed said the items seized will be tested and charges could follow once the results are returned.
Freed said one of the challenges law enforcement agencies have faced in recent years is the creators of synthetic drugs keep slightly altering the formulas to make them in an effort to evade new laws.
Freed added his office is trying to get the case prosecuted by viewing these as “designer drugs” and pointed to the shop as being a nuisance in the community.