Cannabis products seized, 4 arrested for operating illegal dispensary business: DA

SAN DIEGO — Search warrants were served, arrests were made and over $1 million of mislabeled cannabis products were seized following an investigation into an illegal cannabis business in San Diego County, District Attorney Summer Stephan announced Friday.

Four people are facing charges and are accused of illegally selling and distributing products containing marijuana in San Diego County.

Jose Delahoz, 55, and Valeria Rada, 42, have been charged with child endangerment, maintaining a place for marijuana to be sold, tax evasion, and possession of marijuana for sale. They were arraigned Friday in San Diego Superior Court, and face up to eight years in prison.

Diego Delahoz, 30, and Edgar Delahoz, 29, have been charged with maintaining a place for marijuana to be sold, tax evasion and possession of marijuana for sale. They both face up to four years and four months in prison.

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On Wednesday, law enforcement served search warrants at multiple locations and seized over $1.1 million of mislabeled product containing cannabis at various locations, including in a home with young children, DA Stephan announced.

The investigation focused on Canably, a store in Middletown which the DA reports is not permitted to sell marijuana. According to the DA, the store had been presenting itself as a THC store and distributor, with products including thousands of edibles like gummies, peanut butter, beef jerky and 300 pounds of loose marijuana.

“Illegal marijuana businesses that sell unregulated products are an underground economy that undercuts legal dispensaries who are following the law and undercuts the laws that protect children and teens from the potentially toxic effects of high THC cannabis,” said DA Stephan. “They also put consumers at risk because their products can pose a public health risk. Coordinating with our law enforcement partners, we will continue to hold individuals and these businesses accountable.”

The investigation is also accusing Canably of selling and distributing cannabis products within 1,000 feet of a school and residences.

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Law enforcement seized over $2,000 in cash from Canably and found the store had a minimum of $4,000 in credit card sales in less than one day.

The owners of Canably also had their homes searched, which resulted in the seizure of 320 pounds of loose cannabis, $5,658 in cash, more than $10,000 in concentrates and more than $5,000 of edibles. The product was found in an attached garage converted into a workspace for the Canably business that was also being used as a play area for the family’s three young children, according to the DA.

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Several other businesses that had a connection to Canably were also searched. Searches took place at smoke shops in Rancho San Diego and Chula Vista, which reportedly purchased cannabis products from Canably.

Elevated Smoke in Pacific Beach was also searched, where cannabis, a ghost gun, marijuana edibles and concentrates were seized. According to the DA, the smoke shop had been selling edibles purchased from Canably and was operating within 1,000 feet of Pacific Beach Middle School.

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“We’re being told by health professionals at Rady Children’s Hospital that they’re seeing an 800 percent increase in marijuana-related overdoses in children in recent years which is unacceptable,” said DA Stephan. “Edibles in particular pose a danger to young people who are being marketed to or find products like pot gummies and aren’t aware of the overdose danger. It is unconscionable that parents would store such a large amount of marijuana in an area accessible to their children.”

The San Diego Police Department led the investigation, along with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department, Chula Vista Police Department, District Attorney’s Office, and California Department of Taxation Administration.

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