Two cannabis dispensaries in Vancouver were raided Wednesday afternoon by B.C.‘s Community Safety Unit, according to a prominent drug activist linked to both locations.
The raids were carried out at the Medicinal Cannabis Dispensary storefronts on Thurlow Street and East Hastings Street, according to Dana Larsen, whose Medicinal Mushroom Dispensary locations have also been targeted by law enforcement in recent years.
“Both cannabis dispensaries emptied of product,” he wrote on social media. “No arrests made.”
Larsen said he expects the dispensaries to reopen on Thursday, but called the raids “financially devastating” for his ongoing Get Your Drugs Tested project, which uses funding from his various dispensaries to offer free fentanyl screening in the city.
It’s unclear what brought authorities to the Medicinal Cannabis Dispensary shops on Wednesday. Officers from the Vancouver Police Department were present, but a spokesperson told CTV News they were only “standing by for safety,” and directed questions to the Community Safety Unit.
The only cannabis left in the dispensaries today is on the street sign. https://t.co/fFs7OJWPVv pic.twitter.com/sj9n1vqky7
— Dana Larsen (@DanaLarsen) January 29, 2025
CTV News has reached out to B.C.‘s Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General, which operates the CSU, for more information. This article will be updated if a response is received.
Larsen shared an image of a public notice left at the East Hastings Street dispensary indicating drugs were seized under the Cannabis Control and Licensing Act, but providing no further details.
The notice references section 107(2) of the act, which only states that the notice cannot be removed without permission.
“They leave this obnoxious sticker on the door, like a dog marking its territory with pee,” Larsen said.
