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Mather Student Arrested on Drug Charges

Officer reports 45 bags confiscated

A Harvard undergraduate was arraigned on felony drug charges in Cambridge District Court Thursday after police allegedly found 16 bags of psilocybin mushrooms in his Mather House dorm.

If convicted on all three charges, Robert C. Schaffer ’05 faces a minimum jail term of two years and a cumulative maximum prison sentence of 22 years.

Associate Justice George Sprague of the Cambridge District Court set bail at $350 in cash or a $3,500 surety bond. Schaffer was released on bail Thursday.

Schaffer was arraigned on charges of possession of psilocybin with the intent to distribute—which carries a maximum sentence of five years—and possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute, which carries a maximum sentence of two years.

Because Schaffer’s Mather Tower residence is less than 1,000 feet from the Martin Luther King Jr. School on Putnam Avenue, Schaffer was also charged with a drug violation in a school zone.

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Under Massachusetts law, possession of a controlled substance in a school zone with the intent to distribute carries a mandatory minimum jail term of two years and a maximum sentence of 15 years.

“There is no evidence that Mr. Schaffer was distributing drugs to the King School at this time,” said Harvard University Police Department (HUPD) spokesperson Steven G. Catalano. However, suspects need not distribute to children—or even be aware that they are inside a school zone—to be convicted under the Massachusetts Controlled Substances Act.

Officers arrived at Schaffer’s room late Wednesday night after a Mather resident called to complain about the smell of marijuana in the 12th floor hallway, Catalano said. He would not say whether the resident was a student or a tutor.

HUPD Officer Thomas F. Karns Jr., in an incident report filed Thursday morning, said he found the hallway door open and spoke with 12th floor resident Joshua Z. Steinberger ’03-’04.

Steinberger said he invited Karns to search his room. But Karns declined Steinberger’s offer, according to the report, because “the odor of marijuana did not appear to be emanating from [Steinberger’s room].”

Karns said he and HUPD Officer Steven Fumicello then knocked on Schaffer’s door, “where the odor of marijuana was at its strongest.” Schaffer agreed to let both officers into his room, Karns said.

According to Karns’ report, Schaffer then opened a desk drawer and handed Karns what appeared to be a bag of marijuana. “I noticed there were several clear plastic baggies in the drawer that [Schaffer] had taken the marijuana out of,” Karns wrote.

In total, Karns reported that he confiscated 45 clear plastic bags containing leafy and herb-like substances, as well as a foil bag marked “Betel Nut Smart Chew.”

Karns also seized a blue purse holding “an off-white waxy substance that was in flakes and a solid yellow chunk of an unknown substance,” according to the report.

Officers additionally confiscated a pipe, a 200-gram weight and scale, a large black hunting knife, a small box of rolling papers, a bag of potting soil and a hydroponics grow kit, according to the Karns’ report.

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