‘Breaking Bad’ Contest Winner Meets Cast, Ends Up In Prison For Multi-Million Dollar Drug Ring

Ryan Carroll, 29, will serve two years in a Florida prison after police raided his house and found $1.2 million in synthetic pot, $20k in money orders, cash, and six guns. After charging Carroll with five felonies, he’s taken a plea to avoid the mandatory minimum sentences and will only spend two years behind bars. Oh, this all happened immediately after winning a ‘Breaking Bad’ contest where he was flown to Hollywood to watch the series finale with cast members, including Aaron Paul with whom he took a photo with while both wearing the iconic yellow hazmat suits.

‘Life imitating art’

The ‘Breaking Bad’ super fan allegedly ran a worldwide “drug” operation for synthetic pot. I keep putting “drug” in air quotes because a) pot should not be classified as a drug, and b) if pot wasn’t classified as a drug then there’d be no need for synthetic pot to exist. Alas, many states to classify weed as a drug and as I reported on Tuesday, Florida is the HARSHEST state in the nation when it comes to dealing with weed offenders.

Carroll was arrested on New Year’s Day at his Fort Myers, Florida home after police were tipped off by the United States Postal Service.

NBC 5’s WPTV of West Palm Beach has the story:

Carroll, 29, whose arrest on drug distribution charges came three months after he won a contest related to the television show “Breaking Bad,” heard the terms of a plea agreement Monday. He will officially be sentenced to two years in prison and four years of probation at the formal plea and sentencing next Monday.

The charges stem from his New Year’s Day 2014 arrest. Investigators said Carroll ran a million-dollar synthetic marijuana ring out of his San Carlos Park rental, which was raided after postal workers intercepted shipments of the drugs.

Carroll’s arrest drew national headlines because of the link to AMC’s fictional drama that follows the evolution of Walter White from high school chemistry teacher to methamphetamine drug lord. The show’s title was derived from an old colloquialism that means “breaking the law.”

Ahead of the series finale, Carroll entered and won a contest to watch the last episode with the show’s cast in Hollywood. A Facebook photo posted after the final episode showed Carroll and the show’s co-star, Aaron Paul, mugging for a camera while dressed in the show’s signature yellow hazmat suits.

Three months after the series finale, Lee County sheriff’s investigators — tipped off by the U.S. Postal Service — busted into Carroll’s home, where they found the makings of a nationwide synthetic pot operation.

Investigators seized 79,000 small packages containing the drugs, valued at $1.2 million, as well as hundreds of money orders, $20,000 in cash and six guns.

One day after Carroll’s arrest, Lee County Sheriff Mike Scott displayed the fruits of the raid in a warehouse-style garage. Scott called Carroll’s business “a sophisticated operation” run through the website lowpriceherbal.com. According to the website, which remained up in the days following the bust, the synthetic pot could be bought in single packets for as little as $10, or in bulk for as much as $800 per order.

He did have co-conspirators, but being listed as the ‘ring leader’ by prosecutors he was unable to plea down to probation, like the others. Instead he’ll be spending two years in a Florida prison.

When asked by prosecutors to explain the dangers of synthetic marijuana, this was reportedly his Carroll’s response….. /s

For more on this story you can head on over to NBC’s WPTV.

RELATED:

Florida Is The RISKIEST State In The Nation To Smoke Weed

Dude Who Has Sex With Dolphins Gets His Own Documentary: Meet The Florida Man Who Banged A Blow Hole