A Toronto mother of three has opened up a medical marijuana shop on Parkdale's main strip on Queen Street West and a passer-by wouldn't even know it. Nestled between a flower shop and a bar, The Caylx Wellness Centre has no enlarged marijuana leaf emblazoned on the store front, its name isn't a play on words associated with weed and there's no neon lights; the go-to marketing designs for dispensaries. Instead store owner Danielle, who requested to not have her last name published, went a different route and focused on the importance of discretion. [continues 1070 words]
Ruth White measures the success of anti-drug efforts among 14 Division police by the amount of time it takes undercover officers to make a buy. White, the superintendent for 14 Division of Toronto Police Service, said it took her undercover officers three days to make a buy. That means good things for the community, she said. Full details of the arrests, seizure quantities and dollar values are still to be officially confirmed. White said a release on so-called Project SAINT will be issued Monday, Dec. 1. However, she was at the annual general meeting of the Parkdale Residents Association (PRA) on Nov. 27 and gave those in attendance a preview of what the project accomplished. [continues 480 words]
Some Residents Fear New Police Strategy Will Push Drug Dealers Into Parkdale Police at 51 and 31 Divisions will have their ranks bolstered by new squads of officers as part of the Toronto Anti-Violence Intervention Strategy (TAVIS) some longtime Parkdale residents fear drug pushers in other communities will ply their trade here while the heat is on in other neighbourhoods. Sheila Lippiat is one of those concerned. The Parkdale resident of more than 30 years said such a grim scenario has happened in the past. [continues 782 words]
Plainclothes police officers from 14 and 51 divisions, alongside the Toronto Drug Squad, have come together to curb street-level drug dealing in downtown residential areas and community parks. Through the five-week undercover Blue Diamond Project and Project DEED (Drug Enforcement Everywhere Downtown), Toronto Police arrested 150 alleged drug dealers and laid 428 charges for trafficking, possession of narcotics for the purpose of trafficking and possessing proceeds of crime. Police say the 150 arrested individuals have a total of 2,276 previous criminal convictions. [continues 229 words]
