Authorities searched storage unit, office suite in connection with man's arrest

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — New details about a Charlotte man facing federal charges of running a drug operation reveal he seemed to be flaunting his crimes to authorities.

A federal affidavit said 24-year-old Raumeen Shiraz was renting a storage unit on Park Road under the name "Clarence Boddicker," the infamous villain from the 1987 movie Robocop.

A federal bill of information filed in U.S. District Court charged Shiraz with one count of possession with intent to distribute methylone, a Schedule I controlled substance, and one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

In July 2012, DEA agents assisted by the FBI seized precursor chemicals used in the manufacture of illegal drugs from Shiraz’s residence in Charlotte, a storage facility in Matthews and a second storage facility in Charlotte, according to filed court documents and court hearings.

Shiraz appeared in federal court Wednesday morning after his arrest July 13, when DEA and FBI agents raided his home on Robinhood Road in Cotswold.

The same day, authorities said they searched the storage unit on Park Road and also an office suite in Matthews.

Court records said the office was registered to a company called "Shiraz Lab Supply." A check of the still-active website shows a company that said it sells to "individual professionals and laboratories" and promised buyers "you won't find any more affordable prices anywhere in the world."

An undercover agent was able to make several buys of iodine crystals and red phosphorus from Shiraz through the website and a separate eBay account, according to federal authorities.

At the time of the seizure in July 2012, the substance recovered from Shiraz’s storage facility in Charlotte had field-tested positive as methamphetamine. Further lab testing verified that the substance recovered from the storage facility was methylone, which is marketed as the street drug “bath salts,” among other things.

Shiraz is a convicted felon who is currently serving probation for possessing a firearm, and authorities said it was his own probation officer who kick-started their investigation in 2011.

Agents said the officer was conducting a routine check at Shiraz's home and discovered nearly 30 different types of chemicals in his bedroom.

The discovery led agents to begin investigating Shiraz's business and conduct surveillance of his activities.

Two additional packages containing methylone had been shipped to Shiraz from China, according to an October 2012 plea hearing. In addition to the controlled substance, while executing the search warrants, law enforcement agents also recovered four unloaded handguns stored in Ziploc bags from Shiraz’s storage facility in Charlotte.

Cox Media Group