Poppy Brew Illegal

Police raided a California home today where they suspected people were producing opiates. They arrested 28 year old Chad Renzelman, who said he used dried poppy pods to brew a home beer a month ago. He obtained the pods on eBay.

“All I did was make a poppy beer,” said Renzelman. “I spent all morning in jail for brewing beer. I had no idea what I was doing was illegal.”

However, police claim that Renzelman, a PhD candidate in chemistry, used a chemical process to extract opium from from the pods and converted the opium to morphine. Morphine is the active opiate in heroin.

Renzelman was arrested on suspicion of possessing and manufacturing a controlled substance and faces up to seven years in prison.