The San Diego City Attorney’s Office has filed a civil lawsuit against the owner of 11 smoke shops, alleging he illegally sold kratom, a psychoactive substance linked to hundreds of deaths nationwide, and dozens here in San Diego.
In a newly filed enforcement action, obtained by Times of San Diego, City Attorney Heather Ferbert’s Office hopes to stop kratom sales at the 11 smoke shops owned by a businessman named Wadeea Wadeea.
In recent years, kratom’s popularity has grown in San Diego and beyond. Kratom products are marketed as being derived from leaves of the kratom tree, a plant native to Southeast Asia. Some products have opioid-like effects, according to health officials…