The US Drug Enforcement Administration raided two medical marijuana dispensaries in Los Angeles on Thursday 23 October 2014, one in West Hollywood and one in Westwood.[1][2] Both shops belonged to the same company, The Farmacy, and staff at each said they were operating within California’s medical cannabis laws.[1][2] Agents seized money, marijuana and computers from the two locations.[1][2]
DEA Los Angeles spokesman Vijay Rathie said no details were immediately available about why the dispensaries were targeted.[1] The search warrants were under seal, so the nature and scope of the investigation stayed undisclosed, said Thom Mrozek of the US Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.[1] No arrests were made.[1][2]
What each side said
An agent at the scene, speaking anonymously, said the raid concerned how the business was being operated rather than the mere fact of selling cannabis, adding that the DEA would not have come over simple marijuana sales in West Hollywood.[1] Bill Kroger, the lawyer for The Farmacy’s owners, denied any wrongdoing and said his clients had helped write West Hollywood’s ordinance governing medical marijuana dispensaries.[1] The chain’s Venice Beach location was not raided, which staffers attributed to its recent move making it hard for the DEA to find.[2]
