Petty Officer 3rd Class Daniel van Dijk is currently assigned to Naval Base San Diego and is an information systems technician for the mine countermeasures ship USS Champion.
He faces multiple drug charges for allegedly possessing more than 380 grams of ecstasy and 93 tablets of LSD between November 22 and December 3 last year. LSD, also known as acid, and MDMA, or ecstasy, are both psychoactive drugs that alter thoughts, feelings and awareness. According to the US Drug Enforcement Agency, LSD and MDMA are both considered Schedule 1 drugs, which are defined as drugs with “no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.”
Military prosecutors have accused Van Dijk of ordering the drugs from Queens, New York, and requesting they be delivered to his personal mailbox at the base in California. Specifically, he is accused of ordering 174 grams of ecstasy online on November 26, 2018. He also allegedly purchased another 152 grams of ecstasy and 93 “squares of LSD” on November 30, 2018, with the intent to distribute them.
Van Dijk’s court court-martial trial is scheduled for October 21, according to reports.
Last year, 15 US Navy sailors were accused of operating a drug ring that primarily trafficked LSD and ecstasy out of the USS Ronald Reagan, stationed in Japan, between January 2017 and February 2018. Five of the 15 sailors faced court-martials, while 10 received nonjudicial punishments. Four sailors have pleaded guilty as of February 2019, according to a report by Stars & Stripes.
