PIPESTONE -- In what Pipestone County Sheriff Dan Delaney is calling an "unusual" case, a Pipestone man was arrested Monday on controlled substance charges for allegedly growing hallucinogenic mushrooms in his home.
A search warrant was executed at the residence of Donald Carl Lowther, 51, shortly after 7 p.m. Monday, where law enforcement officials found mushrooms in various stages of growth in several rooms in the house.
"We were investigating him for quite some time," Delaney said. "We finally had enough information to move ahead."
Delaney said they were alerted to the possibility of drugs by the amount of traffic in and out of the house -- traffic that included adults and juveniles.
According to the criminal complaint, no one was home when law enforcement knocked at the door of Lowther's residence. The officers entered the home and found 47 jars in a living room closet in which mushrooms were growing. In the kitchen, a container holding 21 growing mushrooms was found. Also located in the house was various literature about growing mushrooms.
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Grow lights, drug paraphernalia, digital scales and marijuana seeds were also found. A bag of marijuana was located in the refrigerator. A South Dakota Department of Corrections ID was found in the living room.
Dried mushrooms found on a plate in the kitchen weighed in at 21.4 grams. Of the 70 mushroom sets in various stages of growth, Delaney estimated the weight when dried would exceed 29 grams.
The street value of hallucinogenic mushrooms is approximately $10 per gram.
While the search was being conducted, the suspect's vehicle slowed near the house and drove away. A Minnesota state trooper stopped the vehicle a block away from the residence and detained Lowther, who was then transported to the Pipestone County Sheriff's Office. He refused to speak with law enforcement officials, refused to be booked and was placed in a cell at the Pipestone County Jail.
Lowther is charged with first- and second-degree controlled substance crimes -- possession of a hallucinogen with intent to sell and one count of second-degree controlled substance. He appeared in Pipestone County Court Wednesday, and bond was set at $100,000.
Delaney said there is no indication any further arrests will be made in conjunction with the mushroom grower.
