Crime

A recent raid on several unregulated dispensaries and smoke shops in San Diego, some of which were operating within 1,000 feet of schools, yielded a large volume of illicit narcotics including 60,000 counterfeit fentanyl pills, as well as cocaine, meth, and ecstasy.

New Mexico regulators revoked the license of Albuquerque-based cannabis business Golden Roots — which does business as Cannabis Revolution Dispensary — after finding that the company illegally obtained and transported its cannabis products.

Two lobbyists in Michigan were sentenced to federal prison over their role in paying bribes to Rick Johnson, the former chair of the Michigan Marijuana Licensing Board.

Two New Jersey men last week pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud related to swindling investors in CanaFarma Corp. and CanaFarma Hemp Products Corp.

The former head of the Michigan Medical Marihuana Board was sentenced on Thursday to nearly five years in prison for accepting bribes while leading the cannabis regulatory body.

Michigan businessman John Dalaly was sentenced on Thursday to more than two years in federal prison for bribing the former head of the state cannabis licensing board.

Richard Kerr, the former mayor of Adelanto, California, was sentenced on Friday to 14 months in federal prison for taking bribes from cannabis interests.

New Mexico officials revoked a cannabis retailer’s license after it was discovered the shop was selling cannabis products from California, amid other violations.

Georgia man Rahsaan Jackson Garth last week was sentenced to three years in federal prison and ordered to pay more than $2 million in restitution for his role in defrauding farmers in a hemp business venture.

A federal grand jury in California has indicted Mark Roy Anderson — a previously convicted conman who served 11 years in prison for an oil investment scam — of defrauding $9 million from investors for a nonexistent hemp farm.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said this week it has shut down a multi-year, $60 million cannabis industry “Ponzi-like scheme” by WeedGenics and its owners.

A second Michigan lobbyist pleaded guilty to a bribery scheme involving the former head of the state’s medical cannabis licensing board.

Two Oregon state senators asked the U.S. Attorney for Oregon to formally investigate corruption in the state capitol related to campaign donations from cannabis operators.

Scammers running a fake cannabis delivery service in Boston used a family’s home address without their knowledge, sending would-be customers to the home to pick up cannabis after already collecting payment.

A second person has pleaded guilty to a bribery scheme between would-be cannabis operators and the former head of the Michigan Medical Marihuana Licensing Board.

The former head of Michigan’s medical cannabis licensing board has pleaded guilty to accepting $110,000 in bribes for industry licenses.

New Jersey hemp company Delta Technologies is suing the Massachusetts-based biotech firm Salzman Group, claiming the company operated a “Ponzi scheme” which utilized more than $700,000 it raised from the firm for its own projects.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission this week issued fraud charges against cannabis company American Patriot Brands, its CEO, and five others for allegedly funneling investor funds into personal accounts and expenses.

Alaska regulators seized cannabis products from Will’s World Extract after determining the products were manufactured using cannabis shipped from out-of-state.

Utah officials warned of a possible scam in a newspaper ad that erroneously suggested people could apply for a cannabis dispensary license.

Weeks after the resignation of Oregon’s top cannabis and alcohol regulator, the state’s Department of Justice announced it will investigate officials who allegedly diverted rare bottles of Kentucky bourbon for their own use.

Michigan officials warn there is an increasing “pattern in reported criminal activity” throughout the state related to cannabis delivery drivers.

Oklahoma City police are investigating a series of related burglaries at licensed cannabis grow sites throughout the city and surrounding area.

The alleged “straw” owner of the Oklahoma cannabis farm where a quadruple homicide occurred last November has been arrested.