Ever forgot something in an Uber? It’s a terrible feeling that many are familiar with. So many riders have left behind possessions that the ride sharing application made a 2018 Uber Lost and Found Index.
Among the most unusual forgotten items were divorce papers, gold grills with diamonds, and a Kevin Durant jersey. And early into 2019, there is already a contender for most bizarre forgotten item in 2019: a 2-pound bag of weed.
A 21-year-old Pittsburgh man, Malik Mollett, was arrested Jan. 9, 2019, by undercover Pennsylvania state troopers after he left his bag, which allegedly contained two pounds of cannabis flower in an Uber vehicle, as reported by Pittsburgh CBS affiliate KDKA-TV.
The driver called police after discovering Mollet had left the bag in the vehicle. Pennsylvania State Police found about 2 pounds of cannabis when they went to check the bag’s contents, according to the criminal complaint. Mollet had emailed Uber, hoping to get the bag back. State troopers then ran a sting operation by pretending to be the driver, instructing him to meet at a McDonald’s in Irwin, and arresting him when he showed up and confirmed the bag was his.
“From the limited analysis I’m able to do, as I am not the attorney on the case, [the police] were within their abilities,” attorney David Shrager, who handles marijuana-related cases in Pennsylvania, told Weedmaps News. “Unfortunately, over the last 40 years, a lot of our fundamental freedoms have been eroded because of a crime-control model as opposed to a due process model,” he added.
About 2 pounds, or 0.91 kilograms, of marijuana were left behind in an Uber vehicle Jan. 9, 2019. Malik Mollett, 21, of Pittsburgh was arrested by Pennsylvania State Police after allegedly trying to recover the bag during a sting operation. Mollett’s preliminary hearing is scheduled for Jan. 30, 2019.
Although the situation seems bleak for Mollett, who is currently being held in the Westmoreland County Prison in Hempfield Township awaiting his Jan. 30, 2019, preliminary hearing, Shrager does point out that attitudes in the Pennsylvania legal system toward marijuana are different than harder drugs.
“While marijuana is still illegal recreationally here, the district attorney’s office and most other people are understanding and we don’t treat it the same way we would treat heroin or cocaine,” he said.
Shrager pointed out that Mollett would “certainly be looking at a felony” charge, but added that he believes that with good counsel, Mollett can avoid that.
“Depending on his criminal history and some other factors, he could certainly enter, potentially, into a couple of different programs that would maybe get rid of his felony, certainly avoid jail time, and hopefully have no criminal record at all.”
Mollett is currently being held on $150,000 bail, as reported by Pittsburgh CBS affiliate KDKA-TV.
