Karakteristike ilegalnih laboratorija za proizvodnju marihuane u Srbiji

Abstract

Marijuana is produced in almost every country in the world, what makes it the most prevalent illegal drug in the global drug market. The number of laboratories that have been discovered in our country in recent years is one of the potential indicators of the increasing expansion of domestic marijuana production under laboratory-controlled conditions. The aim of this study is to determine the prevalence and characteristics of illegal indoor marijuana production laboratories. The sample included 136 illegal marijuana cultivation laboratories discovered in Serbia (excluding Kosovo and Metohija) in the period from 01.01.2013. to 30.06. 2019. The paper presents the distribution of laboratories and their basic characteristics in terms of location, production capacity, quality of equipment, number of arrested persons and the quantity of money and weapons seized. Out of the total number of detected laboratories, 80.9% were installed in urban areas, 8.1% were equipped with highly professional equipment and it was in these "professional" laboratories that the largest quantity of illegal weapons was found. A total of 196 people, of average age of 38 (+/-10) years, were arrested in discovered labs. The authors did not engage in a detailed analysis of the quantity of drug seizure due to the lack of standardized reporting forms. The seized drug was at different stages of the production process, with seizures of whole plants of different sizes reported in some reports, the amount of raw and / or dried drug being expressed in kilograms. Because available cannabis production data is isolated, non-standardized and usually scientifically unsubstantiated, the authors find it currently impossible to estimate overall cannabis production in Serbia with precise data that would be satisfactory for practical purposes.