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fyi: online hydro store sends unsolicited catalog to safe addy

I

idea

Member
this is an fyi about an issue i hadn't run into before today.

i went to check a safe address i use to receive equipment today. when i got there i found an unsolicited paper catalog from worms way, which had sent me a small order to this address about six months ago.

it was not wrapped or covered in any way, so anyone with access to the address could have seen where it was from and what it sold.

it is not a major security issue with my setup but i do not like suprises. it accellerated my plan to stop using this particular address though, which i was going to give up anyway in another two months or so.

i can tell you that i won't do business with worms way after today.

just something else to consider...
 
M

movingtocally

Worms Way is in cahoots with the DEA, and has been for a long time brutha. Do a google search next time first bro.


Be safe.
 
Euphrates

Euphrates

Member
I got a catalog from altgarden.com after about year from order, and all I had ordered where nutes... It was in a plastic wrap thing and was somewhat discrete. No one would be able to tell what it was. Is this out of the ordinary?

does anyone know if altgarden is dubious?

I've heard ups or fedex give's a list of who order's from hydro stores to the DEA, not that I would order anything that raises a red flag.

:Edit: I don't think altgarden is shifty, plus ordering from the store doesn't mean you are cultivating cannabis, I use my nutes on all my house plants, My hibiscus loves it. Nasa uses GH nutes for whatever reason, which are the kind I got. I would like to think the majority of the customers do so for legit purposes. But I dunno
 
wastekan

wastekan

Member
IME AltGarden has been a first rate supplier fast, discreet with responsive customer service. The funny thing is the most of the stuff i get from altgarden are for my vegetable gardens. I'm sure a lot of their business is from growers whose crops are legal.
Quite a while back AltGarden was accused of "working with the DEA" , but was later revealed to be the shipper not the store. All a shipper can turn over is a package count not the contents delivered. I find it troubling that a government agency was (still?) able to go fishing with nothing more than a "drop off" from legitaate business's, and tainting the merchants name.
 
gdup

gdup

Member
From skepticfiles.org - Found by simply googling DEA Worm's Way

'High Times' they aren't at hassled Worm's Way Inc.

You're driving down South Ind. 446 near Lake Monroe and you
decide to stop at Worm's Way gardening store to buy some tomato
seeds.

You grab a couple of packets of seeds and toss a dollar bill on
the counter.

The man behind the counter says he can't sell you anything,
however, not even tomato seeds, until you read an information
sheet provided by the U.S. Department of Justice.

The paper states that Worm's Way has been indicted in U.S.
District Court and is subject to forfeiture to the United States.

"All customers making a purchase from Worm's Way, Inc. will be
required to provide his/her name, resident address if different
from mailing address, telephone number, and driver's license
number with state of issuance and date of expiration or
comparable identification if a valid driver's license is not
held," it says.

The paper goes on to say "Worm's Way, Inc. shall refuse to sell
any equipment or supplies to any customer who solicits advice
concerning the cultivation of marijuana or refuses to provide the
information requested below." It then provides big, bold lines
for customers to write their name, address and other information.

Worm's Way owner Martin Heydt doesn't deny his recent indictment
on eight federal counts relating to either the conspiracy to, or
the actual aiding and abetting of the cultivation of marijuana
plants. He gestures toward the gardening equipment, fertilizers
and other inventory in his store and says, "Virtually everything
in here could be used for illegal purposes if a person wanted to.

"But whatever happened to innocent until proven guilty?" he
asked. "We've not been proven guilty of anything. We've not had
our day in court."

When federal officials served their initial indictment of Worm's
Way last summer, they searched Heydt's business and nearby home
from top to bottom, going through his 10-year-old daughter's room
and even his wife's jewelry box. They found no marijuana, no
paraphernalia, not even a marijuana seed.

"It's Big Brother at his biggest," Heydt said. "It's pretty
chilling if the government can come in here and do this.
Basically, they're trying to run me out of business by putting
fear into people who shop here."

Assistant U.S. Attorney Donna Eide counters that the government
is neither trying to intimidate Heydt nor put him out of
business.
"It certainly is not intended as a harassment," she said by
telephone from her Indianapolis office. "It's the result of a
balancing test. The government could have actually seized the
business. We decided to take the less restrictive avenue."

Eide wouldn't say the Heydt's case is a "War on Drugs"
prosecution any more than any other drug-related case, though she
acknowledged she has never handled a case in which an indicted
citizen's business has been required to question its own
customers. "We want to ensure that the business is run in a
legal manner," she said.

Heydt disagrees, of course. "They're trying to set an example.
They're trying to make a national commitment out of this and use
us to further their cause."

Apparently, the government got on the trail of Worm's Way's
because it advertised its organic and hydroponic gardening
equipment in publications including High Times and Sinsemilla
Tips. Both magazines focus on marijuana culture, cultivation and
the like.

The case against Worm's Way alleges that several people bought
Worms's Way equipment and grew marijuana after seeing
advertisements in the so-called marijuana advocacy magazines.

Heydt argues, "If somebody buys a gun from Don's Guns and they go
out and rob a ban, is Don liable for that?"

Other counts allege that Heydt and employee Harold Bryant either
directly advised customers about growing marijuana or "weed," or
used code language, such as "tomato plants."

The most serious of the charges, conspiring to aid and abet the
cultivation of more than 1,000 marijuana plants, carries a
sentence of 10 years to life. Six other charges carry 5- to 40-
year prison terms each.

Though Heydt's case is scheduled for trial on March 25, he said
that the government has refused to comply with his attorney's
motions for discovery of evidence - a standard trial procedure.

He also claims the government has engaged in various forms of
harassment, including the confiscation of his computer equipment.
"I said 'Copy the hard drive. You don't need the hardware.' Well,
we finally got one computer back after eight months. But they're
keeping the other as evidence, and for what reason I have no
idea."

"If I'm guilty of anything, it's bad judgment," the Worm's Way
owner said. "If I had it to do over, I sure wouldn't ha e
advertised in High Times magazine. If anyone had come to me and
said, 'You could be in serious trouble if you advertise there,'
I'd have pulled my ads, I don't need this."
But whatever the case, I think the point here is that this isn't
even about marijuana. It's about rights and due process.
They're judging us guilty before we've had the chance to argue
our innocence. and they're making it difficult to even do
business before we've had our day in court."
 
gdup

gdup

Member
From MarijuanaHydro.com

Mail Orders as Evidence
Many people wonder if it is risky to order equipment from companies advertising in magazines oriented toward marijuana users. Do law enforcement agencies monitor these companies? The details of just how much attention these companies draw from the DBA and other law enforcement agencies are shrouded in secrecy. What is known for sure, however, is that numerous people have been arrested and convicted based in part on their interaction with companies advertising in drug-oriented magazines?

It is known that in 1989 the DEA subpoenaed the records of companies that advertised hydroponics growing equipment or marijuana-seed catalogs in High Times magazine. Once the DEA obtained this information, they forwarded it to local law enforcement agencies across the country.

In one case, the DEA informed the Missouri State Highway Patrol that Mike had received two shipments of merchandise from Superior Growers Supply, Inc. The state police officer who was given the information drove by Mike’s home and verified his address as the one receiving the two shipments. The officer also noticed that the windows of Mike's home were covered with blankets. The officer contacted the electric company and learned that Mike's home used almost four times more electricity than homes of similar size in his neighborhood.

With this information, the officer prepared an affidavit for a search warrant to search Mike's house for marijuana. The officer's affidavit stated:
Superior Growers Supply, Inc. is a company who sells indoor hydrophobic [sic] growing equipment and grow lights. They advertise in High Times magazine, a magazine that specializes in marijuana-growing products and technology, and promotes growing of marijuana and concealment from law enforcement as well as the legalization of marijuana.

As a law-enforcement officer trained in indoor marijuana-growing operations, I know that indoor-growing operations use large amounts of electricity to operate indoor grow lights and hydrophobic [sic] grow equipment. I also know that blankets are often used to conceal grow lights that are operated 24 hours a day and to obstruct the view of outsiders. The information obtained from the Drug Enforcement Administration identifying individuals who have placed orders with companies such as Superior Growers Supply, Inc. has resulted in indoor-growing operations being located in eight of eight cases that I am aware of.

Based on the above information, derived originally from the subpoenaed records of High Times advertisers, a judge issued a search warrant for Mike's home. The search uncovered an indoor-growing operation, and Mike was arrested and convicted.
There are very recent cases showing that the DBA still keeps an eye on people receiving shipments from such companies. In 1993, for example, the Third Circuit upheld the conviction of Tab Deanery for possession with intent to manufacture marijuana in violation of federal law. The following information was revealed in the court's opinion:
Deanery became a suspect after the DEA learned that he had made mail order purchases of 244 pounds of supplies from Worms’s way Organic Indoor/Outdoor Garden Supply ("Worms’s way") between May 1987 and April 1991. Andrei [the investigating DEA agent] related in the affidavit that he learned "[t]through additional intelligence information" that Worms way was a supplier of cultivation equipment seized in various indoor marijuana cultivation operations, and that Worms way was an advertiser in High Times Magazine, a publication devoted to promoting the growth and use of marijuana .... Andrei cited a copy of an affidavit written by another DBA special agent as the source of his knowledge. That affidavit had been used to obtain a search warrant for Worms’s way in October 1989. Andrei also stated that undercover agents had discussed marijuana cultivation with Worms way’s owner and at least one of its employees "on numerous occasions," . . . and that the agents had purchased equipment from Worms way after telling its owner that the purchase would be entirely used in marijuana cultivation.
The affidavit went on to say:
[Andrei] reviewed UPS shipping records . . . and they indicated that Deanery had received five packages from Worms way at regular intervals [over an eight month period] . . . each weighing two pounds. Because he knew that marijuana growers must use a large amount of fertilizer over a long period of time, Andrei said this regular flow of packages from Worms’s way supported his belief that Deanery was cultivating marijuana. (US v. Deanery [3rd Cir. 1993] 1 F.3d 192)

In another case in 1993, an opinion from the Supreme Judicial Court of Maine revealed that Maine's Bureau of Intergovernmental Drug Enforcement "learned from the federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DBA) that a confidential source of information had supplied information of suspected shipments of hydroponics growing equipment used for indoor marijuana cultivation and marijuana seeds. Information from this source has led to dozens of arrests of indoor growers of marijuana." (State v. Diamond [Me. 1993] 628 A.2d 1032.)

Likewise in a recent case from the Fifth Circuit, the DBA focused on Brian Makeover after "Makeover received a shipment of merchandise from Disco, an outfit engaged in the sale of equipment for use in Hydroponics gardening, and which advertised in High Times, a magazine that promotes the cultivation and use of marijuana." (US v. Makeover [5th Cir. 1993] 5 F3d 863.)

Lastly, in a 1994 case, DEA agents and St. Louis, Missouri police began investigating Joseph Pinson after learning that he "received three United Parcel Service packages from companies that were known suppliers of indoor hydroponics growing equipment. These companies were also known to advertise is High Times magazine, a publication that promotes the cultivation and use of marijuana." Mr. Pinson was subsequently convicted of manufacturing marijuana and sentenced to the federal five year mandatory minimum. (SUV. Pinson [8th Cir. 1994] 24 F 3d 1056.)
 
MobbDeep

MobbDeep

Member
yea thats some bullshit..I had worms way send the same shit to me..not discreet AT ALL..fuckin pissed me off alot man..so what are the risks if your mailam knows for a FACT that you order hydroponic style packages...with names like "sunset hydro" etc on the packaging?? My addy is def not too safe rioght now..due to all my packages and shit..not only from usps,but from fed ex and ups..am i goo dto go?or should i be paranoid? to my mailman,its obvoius Im ordering hydro from hydro stores..and hes delivered ALOT of packages etc..he seems cool..so is there a chance that he just doesnt give a fuck? hes a young type mailman..

i live in a apartment in the "hood"..and im EASILY profiled (young male,gang affilaited)...should I be worried that my mailman will tip the police off?

Also,does ups or fedex really give out info to the cops?

What if I just buy lots of veggie seeds packings..and have alot of veggie and normal plants in my grow room..and all over my house...will this be a good idea?

will cops REALLLY believe that im growing peppers and shit..or just laugh and prolly arrest me suspicion of commting a crime?
 
xOOx

xOOx

Active member
i don't think a worms way catalog is enough to get a search warrant on you, there's tons of people who get that catalog to their house .. it's just a catalog ..

here's what you can do if these things are coming to your house. search the web for companies that sell flower/veggie seeds - there's TONS.

order a few packets of reg seeds like $2.50 a pack, some tomatoes from one..some flowers from another company..place about 5 small orders from 5 different companies, before you know it you will be getting a thousand seed catalogs fall and spring for veggies and flowers, and that worm's way will just kinda be blended in w/em...no big deal..mail man will be see'n tons of seed and garden shit coming to your house..won't really look at it..unless they're growing - special DELIVERY! ;)

plant some of those seeds and put them out on your porch..or in your backyard..it's kinda legal to grow veggies and flowers..

xoox
 
B

been

That Worm's Way "article" is bullshit. I've been buying there for well over 4 years and never had to read any kind of disclaimer, never been carded, never had any problems.... and as for the "owner".... they are employee owned... there would be no one owner.


 
xOOx

xOOx

Active member
p.s. i've also ordered some stuff for them, and believe it or not it wasn't for weed..it was for my reg garden stuff..lol i get the catalog & i don't think anything of it. i read thru it on the shitter, and then throw it out.

xoox
 
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