After executing a search warrant on a west Edmonton home on June 4, officers with the Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams discovered a stash of drugs and cash they believe belongs to an illegal mail-order operation. In a Thursday press release about the June 4 search, law enforcement said they charged three men with drug trafficking and possession in connection with a west Edmonton drug ring.
Online Mail-Order Cannabis Shops Are Common In Canada
Canada’s medical cannabis patients can order their medicine online and have it delivered to their door. Additionally, provinces that have decided to ban private cannabis businesses may still allow residents to order marijuana through the mail. As with physical retail establishments, operators simply need to have the proper licenses.
Yet in the interstices of the law, unlicensed and unregulated cannabis shops have sprouted up in cities across the country. Law enforcement routinely cracks down on these illicit retailers, seizing products and assets.
Some cities, like Toronto, have even attempted to pass ordinances allowing illicit shops to operate, at least while legalization is pending.
But alongside the “pharmacy” phenomenon, another illicit market has sprung up entirely online and in the post. It doesn’t take much to build a website and turn a home into a makeshift cannabis warehouse and shipping depot.
Cracking down on these illicit mail-order operations presents a challenge for law enforcement. That’s because the physical location of the drugs a website might be selling can be tough to track. Furthermore, illicit sellers often offer more than just cannabis, including cocaine and mushrooms.
Website For Mail-Order Drug Ring Still Operational After Law Enforcement Raids Home
Despite the fact that Alberta law enforcement seized all the drugs, cash,