SPRING HILL, FLA. — A Chinese nationalist was arrested in Hernando County after he received 11 pounds of ketamine hidden in candles, authorities said.
According to a Hernando County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) report, on Tuesday, detectives with the Vice and Narcotics Unit executed a residential search warrant at 5043 Tiburon Avenue in Spring Hill following information that an individual at the home was receiving a large quantity of ketamine hydrochloride through the mail from outside of the United States.
During the execution of the warrant, the suspect, Ting Zheng, 36, was taken into custody without incident.
While searching the home, detectives found a package containing 20 large wax candles which had been hollowed out and used to conceal multiple bags of a white, crystal-like substance, the report stated. The substance tested positive for ketamine.
The ketamine removed from the candles weighed to be about 11.198 pounds, the report stated.
Zheng was charged with possession with intent to sell ketamine and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Zheng is a citizen of China who is currently in the United States on a work visa. Due to the nature of the charges, contact was made with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Ketamine is a powerful dissociative anesthetic that is legally used in medical and veterinary settings for anesthesia, pain management, and certain emergency procedures.
Outside of legitimate medical use, ketamine is frequently abused as an illicit street drug due to its hallucinogenic and sedative effects. Ketamine has also been commonly associated with drug-facilitated sexual assaults, often referred to as a “date rape” drug, as it can cause confusion, memory loss, and physical incapacitation when ingested without a person’s knowledge or consent.
The investigation remains ongoing as detectives continue to determine the origin of the narcotics, the scope of distribution, and what Zheng intended to do with the ketamine.
He was booked into the Hernando County Detention Center.
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