Police shut down Toronto warehouse supplying illicit cannabis products

York police have charged a Vaughan man with drug-related offences and shut down a warehouse in Toronto that was allegedly being used to supply an illicit dispensaryin the city with various cannabis products, including edibles.

According to Const. Andy Pattenden, the accuseda 42-year-old man from Vaughanwas under surveillance by York police, who suspected him of dealing various kinds of drugs in Vaughan.

Then, on Thursday, officers following the man allegedly watched him make a "suspicious transaction" at an industrial warehouse in the area of Keele Street and Steeles Avenue W. in Toronto.

When they arrested him that night, police found "business documentation" that led them to a cannabis paraphernalia shop in the heart ofKensington Market, Lit Paper and Glass. There, officers allegedly found a "fully-stock dispensary operating behind the front" of the shop.

The store has been shut down as police investigate.

Meanwhile, York police went back to the warehouse and discovered it was being used to store a "large quantity" of various cannabis products, including edibles, Pattenden said. The products were being broken down and re-packaged for sale at the illicit dispensary in KensingtonMarket.

"This is the first time we've seen a significant quantity of edibles seized," Pattendentold CBC Toronto.

The investigation is ongoing, and it's not yet clear if the warehouse may have been supplying other illegal dispensaries as well, he added. Similarly, it has not been determined if the man who York police have charged owned the dispensary where the products were sold.

Pattenden said York police intend to provide an update on the investigation next week.

The man has been charged with:

• Possession of cannabis for distribution.
• Distribute illicit cannabis.
• Possession of proceeds obtained by crime.