The Office of Cannabis Policy (OCP) has no authority to police or regulate illegal marijuana grows — whether operated by Mainers or Asian Transnational Criminal Organizations (ATCOs) — according to OCP Director John Hudak.
Hudak spoke in October at a “listening session” in Skowhegan alongside OCP Deputy Director of Operations Vern Malloch, and the Maine Wire was there to ask some questions.
[RELATED: Triad Weed: How Chinese Marijuana Grows Took Over Rural Maine…]
“It is clear in statute. It has been made clear to us by members of the committee that oversees us that they never want us to be a law enforcement agency,” Hudak said. “Because of that, we’re not.”
According to leaked Department of Homeland Security memos, there are more than 270 properties in Maine owned by Asian Transnational Criminal Organizations (ATCOs) that are growing marijuana in Maine illegally.
An eight-week long investigation by the Maine Wire has identified more than 100 residential properties in Maine purchased over the last three by years by Chinese individuals, primarily from New York and Massachusetts.
[RELATED: Maine Legislature Will Consider Proposal to Fight Chinese-owned Marijuana Operations…]
The properties show evidence of active or recently active marijuana growing operations, including a strong odor and growing equipment.
Malloch said at the listening session that OCP is aware of the ATCO-controlled illegal marijuana growing operations in Maine, but the agency lacks the tools to take enforcement action against them.
“Because there’s no inventory tracking in [medical marijuana], it also allows them to buy from the illicit market,” Malloch said.
“We’re aware it’s been going on,” he said. “We have very few enforcement tools, investigatory tools that allow us to track it because you can essentially just make up your records.”
Malloch couldn’t recall how many illegal marijuana growing operations OCP had referred to the Maine State Police, but he guessed it was in the thousands.
<span class="dsq-postid" data-dsqidentifier="22864 https://www.themainewire.com/?p=22864">6 Comments
Please follow up on this with ME State Police to see if they’re going to do anything.
If they are growing ILLEGALLY, why isn’t law enforcement doing something about it? This BS has to stop! China is waging a war with their illegal drugs(fentanyl) and infiltration into our country! They are our ENEMY!
“We can’t do anything…” = “people are being paid off by the Chinese”
I have personally sat in my vehicle watching a local “restaurant” receive several large white vans with NY license plates back into their rear entrance from behind Water Street here in Augusta, Maine. It’s a commercial lot, and full of addicts living in their cars, using/selling drugs. “THE” restaurant barely has customers and does a lot of drug processing after hours down under, I guess it keeps the place flush with cash. The druggie bartender blatantly uses drugs and offers deals to the few who wander in when they appear between shifts of lunch and dinner. Little or no food seems to be served. There is a blank space in front of this DRUG PALACE and drug couriers come and go at all hours, but it’s not food door dash because the packages are tiny.
When I spoke to former city manager BB and the Mayors that came before and after, City Councilors about the obvious Drug Den, BB says, It’s about Business, Money comes in, and Money goes out. So now these trucks ome in people work, downstairs, they are of all types most speak no english, BUT they can whip and dip that illegal weed, crack, meth and fentanyl like no one’s business. They bring in huge bails of weed, they obviously take off/receive the crack, meth and fentanyl for distribution in Maine and return to NY with the large bails broken into street packies for quick delivery to the streets of Boston and NY. Just before sunrise, two large Black dudes get into the loaded vans and drive off toward the Interstate. I’ve filmed all this, I sent it to everyone I can think of the MDEA, the local PD, Kennebec Sheriff, FBI, the DEA…they all thank me and yet NOTHING. This has been the scene at what makes us the Drug State of New England! Now I understand there is a bar down the street taking lessons…they also use ARSON too, just like these dudes to burn down their failing marijuana growing businesses. they hire druggies who work for DRUGS and it keeps them compliant. ARSON is a real thing and it impacts everyone who has to keep paying more and more to insure anything in this state, just saying.
Is the Biden crime organization getting a cut 🤔
Is the problem illicit marijuana growing, or is there a possibly more insidious issue of public corruption?