'Spice' in Temple Terrace? Police Make Bust

A Temple Terrace business owner is in jail after police say he was selling “spice” illegally.

Haitham Mousa Amso, 44, of 3460 Park Square East, Apt. 2, Tampa, is the vice president of Smoke and Pipes Inc., which is located at 8908 N. 56th St., according to police.

Police arrested Amso Friday and charged him with felony possession of controlled substances after executing a search warrant at the business.

“Friday’s warrant and subsequent arrest were the result of an ongoing investigation that began several months ago,” according to a Temple Terrace press release.

In December, Attorney General Pam Bondi enacted an emergency order that prohibits chemical compounds used to produce synthetic designer drugs like spice, the release states. That’s when the Temple Terrace Police Department began letting the community know about the order and warning that any possession of the items could result in confiscation and a criminal investigation.

“Records show that notice of the emergency order was hand-delivered to Smoke and Pipes Inc. on March 27, 2013 by Temple Terrace police detectives,” according to the release.

“On May 28, 2013, during a routine follow-up, detectives found more than 200 packets of illegal spice behind the sales counter. At that time, the spice was seized and a sampling was submitted to F.D.L.E. (Florida Department of Law Enforcement) for laboratory examination. The crime lab confirmed that the substances seized were among those prohibited by the Attorney General’s office.”

The investigation led detectives to work undercover, revealing that the business continued to possess and sell illegal spice, the release states. On Friday, detectives seized 468 more packets of spice from behind the sales counter.

The investigation is continuing and additional charges are pending, according to the release.