Mitragyna speciosa leaf powder

Maeng Da kratom, or Mitragyna speciosa leaf powder, is photographed Sept. 26, 2016, in Seattle. A Pen Argyl man found in possession of 1.1 kilograms of kratom was sent to prison, as federal authorities withdraw plans to make the drug's psychoactive substances illegal. (Erika Schultz/The Seattle Times photo | For lehighvalleylive.com)

UPDATE: Pen Argyl man cleared of felony for kilo of legal powder

A Pen Argyl man was sent to Northampton County Prison this week after family members grew suspicious of a large package of green powder found in the laundry room of his home, court records say.

Slate Belt Regional police said they identified the material found Tuesday in 58-year-old Barry Brinker's home as 1.1 kilograms of Mitragyna speciosa leaf powder, a controversial drug also known as kratom.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration on Thursday is set to officially withdraw the main psychoactive substances in kratom from consideration as Schedule I controlled substances, on par with such drugs as LSD, heroin and marijuana.

DEA officials had announced their plans to classify mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine as Schedule 1 drugs Aug. 31, leading to a public outcry. Online communities supportive of the drug say it's useful as a pain reliever, and even an alternative to prescription narcotics.

For now, the DEA says it is taking public comment until Dec. 1 as it considers its next move on kratom.

DEA spokesman Russ Baer told npr.org the agency received more than 2,000 phone calls since August on kratom, mostly in support of keeping it legal.

"So in a spirit of transparency, and to open this up to public dialogue, we withdrew our notice to temporarily schedule kratom," Baer said, according to the National Public Radio report. "We will then give full consideration to those comments before we move forward with any action."

It's unclear whether the DEA's pull-back will benefit Brinker.

That's because Slate Belt Regional police Sgt. Arron Flad, an experienced drug investigator, got a positive field test for a Schedule 1 synthetic substance from Brinker's shipment, according to court records. That could indicate the kratom was adulterated with an illegal synthetic substance.

Otherwise, the psychoactive constituents of kratom -- in other words the chemicals that affect the central nervous system -- "remain -- as has been the case -- noncontrolled substances under federal law," according to the DEA.

Packets of Maeng Da kratom, or Mitragyna speciosa leaf powder, are photographed Sept. 26, 2016, in Seattle. (Erika Schultz/The Seattle Times photo | For lehighvalleylive.com)

The DEA's withdrawal of the kratom ingredients as Schedule 1 drugs takes effect with the publication Thursday of its draft notice of intent in the Federal Register.

Slate Belt Regional police Chief David Mettin said Wednesday night he could not immediately comment on the arrest.

"I know that an arrest was made on a quantity of a controlled substance," he said in an email.

Flad began investigating Brinker, in conjunction with Patrolman Jarad Steirer, after two women alerted police to the large plastic bag of green powder found in Brinker's laundry room, according to court records. The package was shipped Aug. 2 from Indonesia and addressed to Brinker, and consistent with an online order, Flad wrote in the court documents.

It was labeled Mitragyna speciosa leaf powder, and the weight was consistent with plans to sell or otherwise distribute the drug, according to police.

Police subsequently served a search warrant, turning up a pipe used to smoke marijuana or hashish, as well as a small amount of cannabis, court records say. These items were found in a ceramic water basin atop a hutch in the dining room, where Brinker said they would be, according to police.

Brinker was arraigned Tuesday night before District Judge Douglas Schlegel on a felony count of drug possession with intent to deliver, in addition to misdemeanor possession of both marijuana and drug paraphernalia.

He was sent to the prison in lieu of $30,000 bail and faces a preliminary hearing tentatively scheduled Oct. 24 before Schlegel, whose office is in Wind Gap.

Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KurtBresswein. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.