Crime

The conservative think-tank founded by Steve Bannon has released a report titled ‘Cannabis Cronyism’ that alleges profound political corruption in the cannabis space.

Cann Group Limited in Australia said last week it lost $3.6 million when payments meant for an overseas contractor were, “received by an unknown third party as a result of a complex and sophisticated cyber fraud.”

The hacker behind a Christmas Day intrusion into the Microsoft Cloud software of Aurora Cannabis appears to be trying to sell the company’s data on an online marketplace.

North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner Afron Jones has called for giving drug-dependent inmates cannabis to determine whether it might reduce overdose deaths and violence.

The former chief of staff for Fall River, Massachusetts Mayor Jasiel Correia — who was arrested and accused of extorting local cannabis businesses — has pleaded guilty to extortion, bribery, and making false statements in the licensing corruption probe.

Purdue Pharma, the manufacturer of OxyContin, pleaded guilty this week to illegally marketing its deadly and addictive opioid products. As part of its federal settlement, the company faces over $8 billion in penalties.

A group of thieves in France was caught stealing plants from an industrial hemp farm in the belief they were getting THC-rich cannabis.

Washington state cannabis regulators have warned the industry of an ongoing scam called the “fire extinguisher scam,” which targets licensed retailers.

The couple behind the cannabis-friendly cryptocurrency ParagonCoin, which launched in 2017, failed to appear in court and may be on the run after they were fined $250,000 by the SEC and told to refund $12 million to investors.

Cannabis dispensaries in Portland, Oregon have been targeted by at least 47 break-ins since May; store owners believe it’s the same group hitting multiple dispensaries.

The SEC has filed charges against six people for allegedly defrauding more than 400 investors out of $25 million; the scheme supposedly took place between September 2017 and February 2019.

Four men have been arrested for the 2019 murder of Tushar Atre, CEO of Santa Cruz-based tech company AtreNet and cannabis manufacturing firm Interstitial Systems; two of the suspects are former employees of Atre’s cannabis company.

Cannabis supply company Advanced Nutrients says a shipment worth $250,000 was stolen during transit from its Washington-based facility to a warehouse in Valencia, California.

The founders of Green Relief Inc., a Canadian cannabis firm, have been accused of misappropriating about $14 million from the company for personal use.

Lawmakers in Portland and Salem, Oregon are cooperating to investigate a burglary ring that appears to target licensed cannabis businesses.

Massachusetts cannabis regulators have been given access to sealed documents related to cannabis companies linked to Fall River Mayor Jasiel Correia’s bribery case from last year.

The owners of a cannabis farm in Anacortes, Washington have been accused of defrauding investors of nearly five million dollars in an illegal Ponzi scheme.

Dispensary robberies and burglaries in the greater Denver area reached a three-year high in 2019, according to police data.

A judge in Hanover County, Virginia has tossed a cannabis possession charge after a laboratory supervisor claimed in court that their lab could not differentiate between illegal cannabis and legal hemp CBD flower.

Jasiel Correia, the mayor of Fall River, Massachusetts, was arrested this morning and charged with extorting state-licensed cannabis companies.

A group of six people allegedly stole about $250,000 worth of freshly cured cannabis flower from a cultivation facility in Kelso, Washington over the weekend; owners are offering a $5,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest.

A string of at least 10 robberies has struck dispensaries in Sacramento, California; it’s not clear yet whether or not the break-ins are linked.

A study of the Denver area found that the presence of a medical cannabis dispensary indicated temporarily higher crime rates. This could, however, be the result of increased police targeting or simply a temporary effect of a new, cash-only business.