Planning on selling that vintage Grateful Dead T-shirt from your college days? Well, don't look for a buyer in Russia. With the narcotics police launching a nationwide campaign against merchandise depicting marijuana leaves, you might just get in trouble with the law. Last week, agents from the Federal Drug Control Service charged a shopkeeper in Arkhangelsk for distributing "drug propaganda." His offense? Selling removable cellphone covers that feature an image of a cannabis leaf. The vendor, an employee of cellphone store chain Yevroset, faces a 4,000 ruble ($140) fine if found guilty. [continues 627 words]
Two men walk into a clinic to get their cat spayed. What sounds like the opening line of a dubious joke is in fact the beginning of one of many criminal investigations that has left veterinarians and animal lovers up in arms. According to the owner of a Moscow pet clinic, when the vet brought out a syringe to give the cat in question a shot, the men identified themselves as agents of a narcotics squad -- and raided the premises for a banned drug. [continues 703 words]
