VICTORIA - Another unlicensed cannabis dispensary in Victoria has been shut down and raided by the province's community safety unit (CSU), the organization responsible for enforcing the Cannabis Control and Licensing Act (CCLA).
The store, Victoria Cannabis Buyers Club, was raided by officials at approximately 10:45 a.m. Thursday morning. Victoria police accompanied CSU officers into the store and seized a range of inventory.
According to the business' website, the dispensary first opened on the island in 1996. The website adds that the business has had a history of conflicts with the government. Since 2001, the dispensary has endured a number of trials, including 15 trafficking charges laid against the organization and four raids on the dispensary between 2002 and 2003, according to their website.
On Thursday, store employees and owners told CTV News that they plan to go to the B.C. Legislature today to protest the closure and plan to reopen the shop tomorrow.
A volunteer with the Victoria Cannabis Buyers Club says the store is a medical marijuana compassion club and that their patients have proof of conditions from doctors.
The unlicensed dispensary says that the government model is hugely inaccessible and that the store only serves medical patients and not recreational users.
Back in August, the CSU raided and shut down Victoria's largest cannabis dispensary chain, Trees Island Grown.
