A Harlem man is facing charges after authorities say he sold a half-pound of magic mushrooms to undercover cops, then was allegedly caught with five pounds of the illicit fungus in his car.
Dimitri Taranov, 46, allegedly sold four ounces of the mushrooms to undercover narcotics cops on Edgecombe Avenue in Harlem once on Feb. 17 and again on Feb. 23, according to court documents.
Police then obtained a search warrant and seized five pounds of psychedelic mushrooms from Taranov’s car, authorities said.
A 53-year-old man in the car while cops did the search was also arrested, authorities said.
Taranov, who is being prosecuted by the special narcotics prosecutor’s office, was charged with multiple felonies, including criminal possession of a controlled substance and criminal sale of a controlled substance. He was arraigned Wednesday in Manhattan criminal court and held on $50,000 bail.
Taranov was previously arrested in Connecticut in connection to a mushroom-growing operation.
In that case, he was arrested when cops discovered the operation as they responded to arrest him for not paying a ticket for playing his music too loud, the Stamford Advocate reported.
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Taranov’s lawyer did not immediately respond when asked for comment.
