Aug 7, 2013 2 min read

A Nottingham Township man accused of selling synthetic marijuana at a Canonsburg store he once operated waived his case to court Wednesday.

Michael Ficorilli, 50, of 204 Walnut Drive, Eighty Four, had been scheduled for a preliminary hearing before District Judge David Mark on charges of possession and possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance, possession with intent to deliver a designer drug, possession of drug paraphernalia, being part of a corrupt organization and dealing in proceeds of unlawful activity.

Canonsburg police Detective Sgt. Al Coghill began his investigation almost 18 months ago after parents and grandparents reported to Mayor David L. Rhome and police Chief R.T. Bell that drugs were being dealt from the Cricket store, 119 W. Pike St. The store has since closed.

Coghill interviewed a Canon-McMillan student who had become sick after he smoked a product he reportedly purchased at the store. He was treated at Canonsburg Hospital for heart-related complications.

The teen told police the Cricket store was a known location to purchase “K-2,” the street name for synthetic marijuana and designer drugs. He turned over what he had remaining, and police said it tested positive as a Schedule I drug.

The boy, with parental consent, agreed to go into the store and purchase more of the synthetic marijuana as part of a controlled buy. That, too, was tested and determined to be a Schedule I drug, according to police.

Ficorilli is free on $50,000 unsecured bond.