SACRAMENTO — California authorities have tripled the number of raids on unlicensed cannabis shops in the last year and seized $30 million in pot products, but legal industry leaders say enforcement is still inadequate to break the dominance of the black market in the state.
In 2018, the first year of licensing, the state Bureau of Cannabis Control worked with local law enforcement to serve six search warrants on unlicensed pot shops and seized some 1,594 pounds of cannabis worth $13.5 million.
During the first six months of this year, the bureau served 19 search warrants on unlicensed sellers, confiscating more than 2,500 pounds of illegal marijuana products with a retail value of $16.5 million, according to data released last week. The state has also seized $219,874 in cash from illegal pot shops.
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