Shawn Ryan Show

#243 Steve Robinson - What If China’s Secret Weapon Was Sold at Your Local Gas Station?

October 9, 2025

Key Takeaways Copied to clipboard!

  • The substance 70H, comparable to bath salts, is a potent, lab-made opioid currently available in gas stations across the U.S., highlighting a significant lag in government regulation compared to fringe drug use. 
  • Investigative reporting by Steve Robinson of The Maine Wire uncovered a coordinated and sophisticated network of Chinese organized crime, linked to the CCP's United Front, operating hundreds of illicit cannabis grows in Maine, often near U.S. military facilities. 
  • These illicit Chinese cannabis operations generate billions in cash, which is then laundered into the U.S. economy through real estate purchases and exploitation of legal loopholes like the hemp/THCA designation, while also involving severe crimes such as human and sex trafficking. 
  • The investigation into illicit cannabis operations in Maine reveals a sophisticated network involving Chinese nationals as loan officers and realtors, suggesting bank fraud and organized crime connections that law enforcement is failing to address at the higher levels. 
  • The synthetic opioid 7OH, derived from the kratom plant and often sold as "gas station heroin," is a potent, poorly understood, and unregulated drug that poses a significant public health threat, mirroring the early stages of the prescription opioid epidemic. 
  • The lack of aggressive federal prosecution in Maine, partly due to a vacant U.S. Attorney position and political dynamics involving Senators King and Collins, allows organized criminal activity, including Chinese cartel operations and the proliferation of synthetic drugs, to continue largely unchecked. 
  • A systematic pattern exists where the same family, linked to illicit operations, is purchasing nearly all gas stations and convenience stores north of Portland, Maine, converting them to sell products like 70H. 
  • The proliferation of substances like 70H, which acts on opioid receptors, is being aggressively promoted by funded nonprofits as a medical cure for the fentanyl epidemic, effectively switching addiction sources rather than solving the problem. 
  • Despite Robinson's evidence of widespread criminal activity, including human trafficking and national security concerns linked to Chinese organized crime, political figures have become unresponsive, suggesting the operation has professionalized and gained protection. 

Segments

Introduction to 70H Drug
Copied to clipboard!
(00:00:49)
  • Key Takeaway: 70H is a sketchy, potent substance available at gas stations that law enforcement is slow to regulate.
  • Summary: The government is consistently behind the fringe society in identifying and scheduling new psychoactive substances like 70H. The substance appears in convenience stores, spreads quickly through the drug community, and is often found incidentally during raids for other drugs like fentanyl. Regulation takes years, and 70H is difficult to test for, often leading to deaths being misattributed to standard opioid overdoses.
70H vs. Bath Salts Analogy
Copied to clipboard!
(00:03:55)
  • Key Takeaway: 70H follows the pattern of designer drugs like bath salts, where chemists modify molecules to evade existing bans.
  • Summary: 70H is comparable to bath salts because it is a molecule that chemists can slightly alter (e.g., adding a hydrogen atom) to create a new, legal substance when the previous one is banned. This creates an ongoing escalation war between regulators and chemists, often resulting in newer, potentially more harmful, unregulated compounds.
Origin and Potency of 70H
Copied to clipboard!
(00:05:27)
  • Key Takeaway: 70H is a lab-made synthetic opioid derived from a Southeast Asian tree, potent enough to be significantly stronger than morphine.
  • Summary: The guest’s investigation into illicit Chinese marijuana in Maine led to the discovery of 70H, which is synthesized through an elaborate chemical process starting from a plant in Indonesia. Although derived from a plant, it is considered a lab-made synthetic opioid, potentially 46 times more potent than morphine. It is currently sold legally as a drink mix in convenience stores across the U.S.
Guest Introduction and CCP Ties
Copied to clipboard!
(00:08:18)
  • Key Takeaway: Chinese organized crime networks in Maine are directly linked to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) via front groups.
  • Summary: The guest’s reporting exposed a massive Chinese mafia network in Maine, exploiting subsidized loans to buy over 70 properties. A key piece of evidence linking these operations to the CCP was finding T-shirts from the Siju Association of New York—a known United Front front group for the Chinese Consulate—at a drug house near a U.S. Army Reserve garrison.
Illicit Grow Operations Details
Copied to clipboard!
(00:17:16)
  • Key Takeaway: Illicit Chinese marijuana grows in Maine are massive, often exceeding legal limits by 100 to 1,000 times, and involve human trafficking.
  • Summary: The investigation began after a leaked DHS memo indicated over 270 illicit Chinese grows in Maine, which the guest’s independent investigation found to be an underestimate (now over 500). Workers are often victims of trafficking, smuggled into the U.S. via Mexico to work off debt in these illegal operations. These grows require commercial-grade electricity (400 amps) and advanced climate control systems.
Motives: Cash Flow and Poisoning
Copied to clipboard!
(00:27:43)
  • Key Takeaway: The primary motive for the illicit cannabis trade is generating massive, untaxed cash flow to fund malign CCP activities, often involving poisoned product.
  • Summary: The illicit cannabis business in Oklahoma alone is estimated at $150 billion, and Maine’s at $4-5 billion, providing huge cash reserves for the CCP. The cannabis is frequently contaminated with banned pesticides and herbicides imported from China, which are burned in makeshift fumigation processes to prevent mold. This poisoned product is then distributed widely, potentially furthering CCP goals by incapacitating the American populace.
Distribution Network Vulnerability
Copied to clipboard!
(00:33:25)
  • Key Takeaway: The established cannabis distribution network, including vape cartridges, presents a potential vector for chemical or biological weapons distribution.
  • Summary: The refined THC oil extracted from the illicit grows is used in vape cartridges and sold through smoke shops nationwide. This creates a self-distributing network capable of delivering millions of small vials directly to consumers’ lungs, posing a national security risk if weaponized chemicals were introduced.
Laundering Illicit Cannabis
Copied to clipboard!
(00:40:29)
  • Key Takeaway: Illicit cannabis is laundered into the legal system using software manipulation and exploiting the federal hemp loophole (THCA).
  • Summary: In legal states, inventory tracking software is easily manipulated to divert illegal product into the legal supply chain, a process known as diversion and inversion. Furthermore, the 2018 Farm Bill created the THCA loophole, allowing illegally grown cannabis to be transported to prohibition states and sold as ‘hemp’ via smoke shops, bypassing taxes and regulations.
Exploiting Regulatory Arbitrage
Copied to clipboard!
(01:07:39)
  • Key Takeaway: The current regulatory structure rewards the least ethical players by incentivizing cannabis arbitrage across state lines.
  • Summary: The system rewards exploiting the difference between legal and illegal cultivation/sales channels, allowing operators to grow massive amounts cheaply in states like Maine and sell them illegally as ‘hemp’ in prohibition states for maximum profit. This system benefits from low consequences for illegal cultivation in permissive states and access to clean payment rails through smoke shops.
Financial and Real Estate Fraud
Copied to clipboard!
(01:10:48)
  • Key Takeaway: The Chinese operations involve significant bank fraud through misrepresenting property use and utilizing specific realtors and loan officers.
  • Summary: At least 75 properties were acquired using mortgages where the borrowers swore they would be primary residences, but instead were used as illegal marijuana grows, constituting bank fraud. Furthermore, four real estate agents, all born and educated in China (one from the Beijing Foreign Studies Institute, a spy school), were connected to over 300 of these properties.
Mortgage Fraud and Realtor Connections
Copied to clipboard!
(01:11:08)
  • Key Takeaway: Loan officers involved in mortgages for illicit grows included a Chinese national and a Taiwanese national, violating primary residence oaths.
  • Summary: Loan officers on suspicious mortgages swore the properties would be primary residences but instead turned them into illegal marijuana grows, constituting bank fraud. Four realtors born, raised, and educated in China are connected to over 300 of these properties. One of these realtors attended the Beijing Foreign Studies Institute, which is described as spy school for Chinese nationals.
Ineffectiveness of Current Enforcement Tactics
Copied to clipboard!
(01:13:08)
  • Key Takeaway: Raiding marijuana grows only arrests low-level victims of trafficking, allowing property owners to quickly restart operations, sometimes legally.
  • Summary: Arresting individuals at the grow site often nets victims of human trafficking who are unaware of their bosses, communicating only via WeChat. The property owner simply replaces the arrested individual, sometimes immediately obtaining a permit to continue operations legally, rendering law enforcement efforts ineffective against the higher-level organization.
Massachusetts Indictment Details
Copied to clipboard!
(01:15:45)
  • Key Takeaway: A Massachusetts indictment detailed money laundering techniques involving lawyers and law firms acting as CCP cutouts, highlighting the need to target financial enablers.
  • Summary: The indictment revealed defendants living lavishly with large amounts of cash and assets, including a safe filled with passports from trafficking victims. The case listed specific banks and law firms in Massachusetts that function as Chinese Communist Party (CCP) cutouts, moving illicit funds. The speaker emphasizes that targeting these financial facilitators, rather than just the growers, is crucial as high-level crime is fundamentally money laundering.
Bitcoin Mining and Fry Oil Theft
Copied to clipboard!
(01:18:46)
  • Key Takeaway: Chinese cartels are reportedly stealing used fry oil from Midwest restaurants to use as coolant for submersible Bitcoin mining machines to evade detection.
  • Summary: Stockpiling US cash suggests a purpose beyond simple investment, possibly related to illicit digital currency operations. Submersible Bitcoin machines cooled by stolen fry oil are quieter and sneakier than those using fans, making them less likely to attract attention. Bitcoin allows for near-instant, unstoppable transfer of large sums of money across international borders.
Maine’s Lack of Federal Prosecution
Copied to clipboard!
(01:24:19)
  • Key Takeaway: Maine currently lacks a U.S. Attorney, and Governor Janet Mills has remained silent on the vast criminal conspiracy unfolding under her watch, despite signing the law enabling it.
  • Summary: The previous U.S. Attorney, Darcy McAway, was appointed a judgeship by the Governor after retiring, leaving the post vacant, which hopefully will soon be filled by a Trump appointee. Governor Mills has not commented on the criminal activity, which is occurring largely due to a law she signed, and she previously hosted the head of the Chinese consulate in New York at her inauguration. Congressional candidates and news outlets have been shown active Chinese marijuana grows, yet state police and the Governor remain silent.
Governor’s Brother’s Legal Involvement
Copied to clipboard!
(01:27:04)
  • Key Takeaway: Governor Janet Mills’ brother, Paul Mills, acted as the tax document preparer for a property transfer involving an illicit Chinese drug house to a Chinese national.
  • Summary: Paul Mills facilitated a gift transfer of property in Corinna, Maine, from a Massachusetts resident to an individual in Guangdong Province, China, shortly after local raids. While Paul Mills claimed he does not practice in that county for other clients, he handled this transfer for the property linked to illegal activity. This action suggests an attempt to shield the property by moving ownership to someone outside local jurisdiction.
Money Seasoning via Attorney Trust Accounts
Copied to clipboard!
(01:30:38)
  • Key Takeaway: A money laundering technique called ‘seasoning’ involves depositing illicit cash into an attorney’s IOLTA trust account and then issuing a check to a real estate company to legitimize the funds for property purchase.
  • Summary: This technique allows criminals to bypass IRS scrutiny and attorney-client privilege protects the relationship between the client and the lawyer facilitating the transfer. This method explains how the Chinese drug cartel rapidly expanded its real estate empire by buying properties in Maine for cash, closing deals in 20 days, often 20% over asking price. The indictment in Massachusetts details the steps necessary for this money seasoning process.
7OH Opioid Drug Details
Copied to clipboard!
(01:37:04)
  • Key Takeaway: 7OH is a synthetic opioid derived from the kratom plant, chemically processed to be many times more potent than morphine, and is readily available in convenience stores.
  • Summary: Raw kratom tea is mildly stimulating, but chemical processing creates 7OH, which acts on the same brain receptors as fentanyl, making it a hard opioid. It is often marketed deceptively, sometimes called ‘gas station heroin,’ and its potency is difficult to measure, though Narcan can reportedly reverse an overdose. The drug’s availability in gas stations and tobacco shops means it is easily accessible to the public, including minors.
7OH Marketing and Industry Pioneers
Copied to clipboard!
(01:54:03)
  • Key Takeaway: Vince Sanders, founder of CBD American Shaman, is a major manufacturer of 7OH, which quickly surpassed his CBD business in revenue, often given away as free samples.
  • Summary: Sanders claims he discovered CBD while treating his uncle’s lung cancer, leading him to start his CBD company before pivoting to 7OH production. Sales representatives at these locations are reportedly telling customers the drug is non-addictive and can replace prescription painkillers, despite packaging warnings. This marketing mirrors the historical promotion of prescription opioids as safe, natural alternatives.
Fentanyl Market Dynamics and 7OH Threat
Copied to clipboard!
(02:06:29)
  • Key Takeaway: If fentanyl supply tightens due to successful border enforcement, the low price and availability of 7OH in head shops will make it an attractive alternative for users.
  • Summary: The dynamic mirrors the shift from prescription pills to heroin when pill mills were cracked down upon; reduced fentanyl supply will increase its price, pushing users toward 7OH. The federal government is beginning to act by asking the DEA to schedule 7OH and warning vape stores, but synthetic drug producers are already developing second and third-generation molecules to circumvent bans. The massive profits generated by selling addictive products ensure continuous innovation in the illicit drug market.
Hemp Industry Misdirection and Synthetic Cannabinoids
Copied to clipboard!
(02:16:55)
  • Key Takeaway: Advocates for the hemp industry, who promised industrial applications, are instead promoting smokable hemp products laced with synthetics like THCP manufactured in China.
  • Summary: THCP, a potent cannabinoid that can cause tachycardia and schizophrenic episodes, is being sprinkled onto hemp matter and sold legally in Maine gas stations. The promised proliferation of hemp rope and shirts has not materialized, suggesting the primary purpose of legalization is facilitating the sale of psychoactive, synthetic-laced products. This trend shows how the regulatory lag allows new, potent synthetic drugs to enter the market under the guise of legal hemp.
Gas Station Takeover Systematic
Copied to clipboard!
(02:20:38)
  • Key Takeaway: A single family is systematically purchasing almost all gas stations and convenience stores north of Portland, Maine.
  • Summary: The same family that acquired properties where illicit tablets were found is now buying numerous gas stations and convenience stores across northern Maine. Their playbook involves replacing standard food items with pipes and various hemp/70H products. This organized shift suggests the activity is being executed according to a deliberate, overarching plan.
Marijuana Use Surpasses Alcohol
Copied to clipboard!
(02:22:01)
  • Key Takeaway: Daily active marijuana users surpassed daily active alcohol users for the first time last year, normalizing substance use.
  • Summary: Freakonomics noted that last year marked the first time daily marijuana users outnumbered daily alcohol users, a trend likely underestimated. This normalization treats marijuana use like drinking coffee or taking medicine. The massive amount of money generated from this trend is being heavily poured into politics.
Political Silence After Reporting
Copied to clipboard!
(02:23:18)
  • Key Takeaway: After publishing evidence of illegal grow houses, law enforcement failed to act, and previously friendly politicians ceased contact.
  • Summary: The expected police intervention after documenting illegal grow houses and tax records did not materialize; instead, the operation professionalized and grew bolder. Republican and non-Republican politicians who previously engaged with the reporter began avoiding eye contact and ignoring calls. This silence suggests political influence or fear surrounding the exposed network.
Lobbying Groups for 70H
Copied to clipboard!
(02:23:47)
  • Key Takeaway: The illicit industry utilizes nonprofits like the Hemp Roundtable and groups like 7 Hope to lobby for 70H as a medical solution.
  • Summary: The operation uses two primary nonprofits as lobbying fronts for protection, including the Hemp Roundtable and state-level associations. One specific group, possibly affiliated with Vince Sanders, uses the 70H logo. These groups fund a concerted PR effort to market 70H as a cure for the fentanyl epidemic.
70H Opioid Receptor Danger
Copied to clipboard!
(02:26:56)
  • Key Takeaway: 70H substances act on opioid receptors, mimicking morphine or fentanyl, and are reversible by Narcan, indicating they are functionally opioids.
  • Summary: Politicians familiar with medical dangers understand that 70H products stimulate the same brain receptors as fentanyl or Percocet, creating an identical sensation. These substances are so similar that Narcan, the opioid reversal drug, is effective against their overdoses. The danger lies in the substance’s chemical action, regardless of its legal formulation or origin.
Oklahoma’s Parallel Crisis
Copied to clipboard!
(02:28:07)
  • Key Takeaway: Oklahoma faces a worse crisis with city-sized Chinese cartel greenhouses enslaving migrants, with thousands of licensed growers suspected of ties to organized crime.
  • Summary: Senator Mark Wayne Mullen is familiar with the issue, which is exacerbated in Oklahoma due to geographic factors and licensing structures. Chinese cartels operate massive complexes where smuggled migrants are forced into cannabis slavery under the guise of flower-cutting jobs. Authorities estimate 3,000 of Oklahoma’s 5,000-6,000 medicinal growers are suspected of ties to Chinese organized crime.
Eastport Cannery Link
Copied to clipboard!
(02:29:48)
  • Key Takeaway: Evidence found in a Maine facility linked criminal operations in Eastport, Maine, directly to Oklahoma through an OSU tablecloth.
  • Summary: An old sardine cannery in Eastport, Maine, used by Jimmy Wong for human trafficking and marijuana growing, provided a physical link to Oklahoma. An Oklahoma State University tablecloth was found tacked up inside the facility to block light and hide operations. This suggests vehicles and personnel from Oklahoma were involved in the Maine-based criminal network exploiting the hemp loophole.
Gas Station Heroin Proliferation
Copied to clipboard!
(02:32:22)
  • Key Takeaway: Regulatory barriers are extremely low, allowing addictive substances like ‘gas station heroin’ and contaminated weed to spread easily, serving America’s enemies’ interests.
  • Summary: Society faces a challenge in controlling mind-altering substances sold at low regulatory barriers in gas stations and convenience stores. It is against America’s interest to have citizens addicted to these products, especially when they are backed by CCP-connected trafficking networks. These networks intentionally co-locate facilities near sensitive infrastructure for potential surveillance or conflict advantage.
Consumer Safety and Pesticides
Copied to clipboard!
(02:34:33)
  • Key Takeaway: Consumers deserve certainty that legal cannabis products are free from dangerous contaminants like Chinese pesticides, which are common in illicitly grown products.
  • Summary: Law-abiding citizens who consume cannabis legally deserve products free from contaminants like the 16 Chinese pesticides found in illicitly grown products. Homes formerly used as grow operations may remain poisoned with these chemicals, posing a risk to new occupants. Consumers should grow their own cannabis or avoid products sold in head shops or gas stations due to the lack of regulatory certainty.