Preliminary Hearing Set for Mushroom Farm Suspects

Thursday, April 18, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

Former University of Nevada, Reno seismology researcher Bill Peppin, 51, and Roger Denault, 50, face charges of trafficking and sales or manufacturing of a controlled substance.

Both men surrendered to authorities on Tuesday and were released on $25,000 bond.

The case unfolded when Denault was stopped in February on the wrong side of the median in Truckee, Calif. Officers found 50 pounds of the illegal mushrooms in the car.

Later, investigators linked Denault with Peppin through the house Peppin rented in Washoe Valley, where authorities discovered the growing operation and about 85 pounds of the hallucinogenic mushrooms.

Officers estimate the mushrooms, which affect mood and perception in a manner similar to LSD, had a street value of $244,000.

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