Justice man gets 10 years for manufacturing synthetic pot

A south suburban man has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for manufacturing synthetic cannabis.

U.S. District Judge Manish S. Shah handed down the sentence Tuesday to 51-year-old Khalid Hamdan of Justice, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s office. Hamdan was convicted last year of one count of conspiracy to manufacture the synthetic cannabinoid XLR 11 and two counts of possessing it with intent to distribute.

Hamdan manufactured and stored the chemical in storage units in Bridgeview and Chicago Ridge and mixed it with tea leaves and other substances to create the drug K2, or “spice,” prosecutors said. The drug was sold wholesale to customers under brand names including “Diablo,” “Bomb Marley,” “Joker” and “7H Hydro.”

The U.S. Attorney’s office said Hamdan’s sentence is the highest to date in the northern district of Illinois for manufacturing synthetic pot.

“Synthetic cannabinoids are often falsely marketed as the ‘legal,’ equivalent alternative to marijuana, but the effects are much stronger, more adverse, and less predictable than marijuana,” U.S. Attorneys Kelly M. Greening and Matthew Schneider wrote in a sentencing memorandum.

“Defendant was a large-scale drug trafficker who manufactured and sold kilograms and kilograms of these drugs to customers across Illinois, Indiana and other states,” they continued.