Vape store clerks near Ole Miss campus jailed, facing drug charges

Key Points:

• Two Oxford, Mississippi vape store clerks, Yahya Mohamed Mosleh and Islam Yahya Mosleh, face federal charges for possession with intent to distribute controlled substances linked to purchases made by two University of Mississippi students who later died.
• Investigators found packaging associated with kratom-related products at both students' death scenes, though toxicology results are still pending; the students had purchased similar synthetic kratom items labeled "Smax, Pseudo-DHM" tablets.
• Kratom has been illegal federally since August 2023 and banned in Oxford since 2019, with Lafayette County prohibiting its sale and possession since 2021.
• Law enforcement seized over 500 kratom-related products and other THC substances from the vape store, and an informant reported store clerks warning about the dangers of the kratom pills.
• The Moslehs are not accused of causing the students' deaths, but their arrests come amid ongoing investigations into the substances linked to the fatalities.