Three MSU students were arraigned Wednesday after police discovered a pound of marijuana and other drugs in their East Lansing home.
The students charged were Michael Puretz, 20; Adam Vielea, 21; and Ryan Webster, 20. They face a variety of felony and misdemeanor charges.
A specialized team of police officers from MSU, East Lansing and Meridian Township searched the students’ home in the 200 block of Beech Street on Tuesday evening, East Lansing Police Capt. Juli Liebler said. The search resulted in the discovery of marijuana, unidentified pills and psilocybin, a hallucinogen known as mushrooms.
Webster was charged with delivery of marijuana and possession with intent to deliver the drug, both felonies punishable by four years in prison. Puretz was charged with delivery of marijuana, possession of marijuana and possession of psilocybin, a one-year misdemeanor. Vielea was charged with possession with intent to deliver marijuana and possession of cocaine, a four year felony.
In addition, Joyce Draganchuk, Ingham County Chief Assistant Prosecutor, said Webster will also be charged with possession with intent to deliver psilocybin, a seven year felony.
Webster, Puretz and Vielea were released on a $5,000 bond. None could be reached for comment.
Webster is the son of Steven Webster, MSU vice president for governmental affairs, who was unavailable for comment on Thursday evening.
The men will appear at a preliminary hearing on Nov. 18 in 54-B District Court.
Jasmine Greenamyer, health educator at Olin Health Center, said statistics point to the presence of marijuana and other drugs in the city.
An MSU survey conducted in Spring 2002 by the National Collegiate Health Assessment, 6 percent of students have used marijuana in the past month and 2 percent have used hallucinogens such as mushrooms in the past month.
“There are MSU students using these substances, so it’s not totally out of the blue to find MSU affiliated students using them,” Greenamyer said. “But in general it’s uncommon.”
The survey also showed that 63 percent of MSU students have never tried marijuana and 92 percent have never tried mushrooms.
