Pubdate: Fri, 19 Aug 2016
Source: Northumberland Today (CN ON)
Page: A1
Copyright: 2016 Sun Media
Contact: http://www.northumberlandtoday.com/letters
Website: http://www.northumberlandtoday.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/5003
Author: Pete Fisher

POLICE BUST DISPENSARY

South Shores Wellness at Alderville First Nation Was Raided by Opp on Wednesday

ALDERVILLE - A marijuana dispensary was taken down by provincial 
police on Wednesday afternoon.

The Ontario Provincial Police Central East Drug Unit, assisted by 
Northumberland OPP, executed a search warrant at South Shore Wellness 
- - Full Service Cannabis Dispensary located at 8987 County Road 45 in Roseneath.

The store selling marijuana to people with proper licenses was opened 
approximately two months ago and has a steady business.

Just last week owner Tim Tucker said as a result of a story in 
Northumberland Today his business increased.

Tucker said last week he was getting more seniors coming in and 
stated "it's done a good thing."

When contacted after being released from custody on Wednesday 
evening, Tucker said "no comment" about what took place earlier in the day.

Last week, Tucker indicated he along with each member of his staff 
have prescriptions for marijuana use which is the only way the 
Supreme Court allows "patient to patient transfer of medication."

A number of types of marijuana were seized from the store and 
officers were on site for several hours documenting evidence.

On the menu and in jars located behind the counter were items such as 
hash oil, and different types of product including Critical Mass, 
White Cookies, Rock Star, Sweet Tooth, Bruce Banner and White Widow.

Among the items seized was a ZAP Cane, which is a one million volt 
stun gun walking stick, complete with flashlight. A poster inside the 
store said marijuana was the "Devil's Harvest" and stated it was "the 
smoke of hell."

On a refrigerator were magnets depicting the colours of food chains 
with different sayings like "Bonger King," and "Budway."

"I smoked weed and nobody died" and "I scored HIGH on my drug test" 
were other magnets.

Speaking on Wednesday evening, Alderville First Nation Chief Jim Bob 
Marsden said "I was surprised." He had hoped to find out more on Thursday.

Tucker said last week that he is negotiating with the Band Council in 
Alderville about leasing a building to grow marijuana. The building 
he is looking at leasing is 5,000 square feet.

There is a community meeting scheduled for Aug. 24 in Alderville to 
get feedback on the proposed project. There was no word on Thursday 
whether that meeting is still going ahead or not.

"Regulations have come out and they are favourable to us so we're 
going ahead with this community meeting to try to convince the Band 
to allow us to put a guarded (facility) on the reserve for patients," 
Tucker said at the time.

On Aug. 11, Health Canada issued a statement concerning access to 
cannabis for medical purposes.

"Storefronts selling marijuana, commonly known as 'dispensaries' and 
'compassion clubs' are not authorized to sell cannabis for medical or 
any other purposes. These operations are illegally supplied, and 
provide products that are unregulated and may be unsafe. Illegal 
storefront distribution and sale of cannabis in Canada are subject to 
law enforcement action.

"Under the ACMPR (Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes 
Regulations), Canadians who have been authorized by their health care 
practitioner to access cannabis for medical purposes will be able to 
produce a limited amount of cannabis for their own medical purposes, 
or designate someone to produce it for them. They will also continue 
to have the option of purchasing safe, quality-controlled cannabis 
from one of the 34 producers licensed by Health Canada.

"Individuals wishing to produce a limited amount of cannabis for 
their own medical purposes, or to designate someone to produce it for 
them, will need to obtain authorization from their health care 
practitioner and register with Health Canada. Additional information 
on how to register and legally purchase starting materials will be 
available on Health Canada's website on Aug. 24."

Three people were taken into custody, but Tucker was the only person 
charged on Wednesday. He was arrested at the store, but later 
released from custody pending a court appearance. He is facing a 
charge of possession for the purpose of trafficking and the 
investigation is continuing with further charges possible.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom