One Of Colorado’s Largest Pot Businesses Raided & Licenses Suspended
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One of Colorado’s most prominent cannabis businesses has been shut down. Sweet Leaf, which first opened up shop back in 2009, has closed multiple locations across the Denver metro area after the Denver Police Department (DPD) issued search and arrest warrants on Thursday, according to the Police Department.
Sweet Leaf Raided & Licenses Suspended
Photo Courtesy of Sweet Leaf
According to Excise and Licenses communications director Daniel Rowland, in conjecture with the DPD, the department suspended 26 of Sweet Leaf’s licenses for medical, retail, cultivation and extraction operations in Colorado. The department levied the suspensions after hearing the Denver Police Department’s plan to conduct search and arrest warrants across multiple Sweet Leaf operations.
The suspension mandate says: “Reasonable grounds and probable cause exists to believe that respondents have engaged in deliberate and willful violations of state and local laws or regulations, and/or that the public health, safety and welfare requires emergency action.”
As a result, 12 unnamed people were arrested as part of an ongoing investigation into illegal marijuana sales at the company. According to Denver Police officials, those arrested were in violation of the one-ounce-per-person, per-day limits established under Colorado’s incumbent cannabis laws.
As it stands, all 10 of Sweet Leaf’s locations in Denver are closed for business.
One location even has a typed letter on its door, explaining its current status to customers.
“Medical and/or retail licenses for these premises have been suspended by order of the Denver Department of Excises and Licenses for alleged violations of Colorado law,” reads the sign.
Their lone location in Aurora, Colorado was also raided, but their business license has yet to be suspended.
“We are waiting to receive more information from police investigators to determine whether we need to take any action,” said Aurora spokesperson Julie Patterson.
Final Hit: One Of Colorado’s Largest Pot Businesses Raided & Licenses Suspended
According to police, the endeavor was solely a Colorado-based effort, spearheaded by Denver police. The DPD also partnered with the Aurora Police Department, the Denver District Attorney’s Office, Denver City Attorney’s Office, the Denver Department of Excise and Licenses, the Colorado Marijuana Enforcement Division and the Denver Department of Public Health and Environment, as part of the year-long investigation.
Per a police department news release, eight of the Sweet Leaf dispensaries were in clear violation of Amendment 64, which regulates the amount of cannabis sold for recreational use.
A representative from the cannabis company sent an emailed statement to Westword on Thursday regarding their up-in-the-air status.
“This morning, Sweet Leaf was surprised to receive notification from the Department of Excise and License suspending all of our city licenses in the City and County of Denver. It is unclear at this point exactly what actions, if any, Sweet Leaf took to cause the city to issue this order. Sweet Leaf is cooperating with the authorities to resolve this issue and hopes to have all of their stores back in operation as soon as possible.”
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