Unlicensed cannabis stores in Cambridge, Ont. operating despite request to shut them down
Two unlicensed cannabis stores in Cambridge, Ont. are causing concern, but for now, both remain open.
Sovereign Toke and Grand River Medicinal both have signs posted outside reading: “this store is operated by sovereign people on sovereign land. We are exercising our constitutional and inherent rights.”
“These stores, they don’t have to follow any of the same rules. They don’t have any of the same costs, and they undercut the prices of all the legal stores,” explained Corry Van Iersel, the president of True North Cannabis Co., which has a location on King St. East, just down the road from one of the unlicensed stores.
True North Cannabis Co. in Cambridge, Ont. (Krista Simpson/CTV Kitchener)
Van Iersel notes that licensed stores face a number of expenses, ranging from insurance fees to computer programs, required for government reporting of sales. They also have to operate under strict rules, including ones that regulate the strength of their products.
Unlicensed stores, on the other hand, do not.
“The prices are cheaper and their products are stronger,” Van Iersel said.
True North Cannabis Co. in Cambridge, Ont. (Krista Simpson/CTV Kitchener)
He’s reached out to the Waterloo Regional Police Service in the hopes of getting the stores shut down.
“They told me to call the AGCO, the Alcohol and Gaming Commission. They told me to call the OPP, the OPP tell me to call regional police,” Van Iersel explained.
In a statement to CTV News, Waterloo Regional Police said: “We take all incidents of a criminal nature seriously and can confirm that illegal cannabis dispensaries throughout the region are being investigated by our service in partnership with the Provincial Cannabis Enforcement Team.”
They continued: “We remind the public that it is illegal and unsafe to purchase cannabis from anywhere other than an Ontario-authorized, licensed retail shop, or online through the Ontario Cannabis Store website.”
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario said it’s only responsible for regulating Ontario’s cannabis stores, but does not have a compliance role for ones that operate without a license. While Ontario Provincial Police said this case would fall under the jurisdiction of local police.
Grand River Medicinal in Cambridge, Ont. (Krista Simpson/CTV Kitchener)
According to Indigenous rights lawyer Sara Mainville, there are a number of so-called sovereign stores operating in southern Ontario.
“This is sort of the problem coming to roost, that the federal and provincial governments have ignored First Nations who have wanted to legitimately participate in this industry and didn’t have the tools to do so.”
Mainville said Ontario missed an opportunity when developing its cannabis store framework.
“The answer for me, it always has been to legitimize First Nations in regulating these activity so… it doesn’t end up spilling across the province.”
Mainville adds that these kinds of stores are low on the enforcement list for municipal and provincial police services.
While some have raised concerns about the safety of the products being sold at these stores, Mainville said those fears may be overblown.
“It’s your neighbourhood dealer that’s supplying these cannabis stores,” she explained.
Mainville said there are problems with unlicensed stores operating under the sovereignty banner.
“I definitely support the assertion of rights in a lot of different ways, but this assertion of rights is not benefiting anybody but the store owner and probably a number of partners behind them that are probably not even Indigenous. So this is one of the sole reasons why I’m very critical of it. I don’t see any benefit going back to the community in these stores, unlike some of the First Nations stores that are open and have the support of the community, they do do revenue sharing and they do give back to the community and these stores do not.”
CTV News visited both Cambridge stores hoping to speak to the owners, but neither have responded to our request for an interview.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Guilty: Trump becomes first former U.S. president convicted of felony crimes
Donald Trump became the first former American president to be convicted of felony crimes Thursday as a New York jury found him guilty of all 34 charges in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through a hush money payment to a porn actor who said the two had sex.
Can Trump come to Canada now that he's a convicted felon?
A Canadian immigration lawyer says now that Donald Trump is a convicted felon, he is technically barred from crossing the border into Canada.
Montreal tech billionaire charged with several sex offences
Robert Miller was charged Thursday with several sexual assault charges after Montreal police reopened an investigation into the tech billionaire.
'Why didn't they stop?' Mom asks of driver in hit-and-run crash that killed son
The mother of a 13-year-old boy who was killed in a hit-and-run in Edmonton is begging the driver to come forward.
The northern lights are returning to night skies across Canada this Friday
If you missed the brilliant displays of the aurora borealis over North America on May 10, you may have another chance to see them on Friday night.
A pair enjoyed pricey meals and bolted when it was time to pay. Their dine and dash ended in jail
A Welsh couple who dined out on pricey meals and bolted when the bill came is now paying the price, behind bars.
'All we need is a plug-in and a sink': B.C. helicopter charity delivers health care to remote Canada
Imagine your dentist arriving to help you via chopper. That is the aim of Helicopters Without Borders, a registered charity in B.C. specializing in bringing health care to remote communities, the sort of places you can only access quickly by air or water.
Shell investigating a 'potential cybersecurity incident'
Oil and gas giant Shell says it is investigating a possible cybersecurity 'incident.'
$400K in damages for B.C. woman who had unnecessary mastectomy was 'inordinately high,' court finds
A jury's award of $400,000 to a woman who had a mastectomy after being misdiagnosed with breast cancer has been substantially reduced by B.C.'s highest court, which found the damages were "wholly disproportionate."