A high profile takedown of a Mott Haven cannabis dispensary has left residents concerned about the effects of illegal pot shops on young people in the neighborhood.
While investigating a nightclub at 516 Timpson Place on July 21, law enforcement officials uncovered a multi-million dollar illegal operation on the premises that has led to four arrests so far. Following up on complaints from the public, the New York City Sheriff Department’s Joint Compliance Task Force raided the unnamed, single-story brick structure in a residential part of Mott Haven.
The task force, which consists of the Sheriff’s Office, the NYPD and the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, recovered more than $5 million worth of illicit products, including 1,300 pounds of cannabis flower and pre-rolls, as well as around 200 pounds of mushrooms, mushroom edibles and concentrates, according to Ryan Lavis, director of public information for the city’s Department of Finance, which oversees the Sheriff’s Department.
Officials found over $5 million worth of illicit products, including around 1,300 pounds of cannabis flower and pre-rolls, as well as around 200 pounds of mushrooms, mushroom edibles and concentrates, Lavis said.
Sheriff Anthony Miranda, who came before Community Board 1 at a meeting in May to reassure the board that his department is scrutinizing cannabis operations, said in a video on the NYPD’s social media account, that the Timpson Place operation was being used to manufacture, process and distribute illegal products beyond the Bronx.
“This is just distribution,” Miranda says in the video. “That means that’s how much product they had flowing through this one location.”
Many of the products were wrapped in a way to look like candy, to entice children to buy it, officials said.
“These illegal shops [prey] on our youngest and undermine the legal cannabis industry,” said Fabian Levy, the city deputy mayor for communications, on social media platform X.
Officials said the bust is believed to be the largest in the city since the start of Operation Padlock to Protect in May, which calls for law enforcement to inspect cannabis operations and shut down those operating illegally.
“Many have been hiding their sophisticated operations at places like this one in the Bronx,” a July 22 post on the official account of Mayor Eric Adams stated, regarding the bust. “That was until our team moved in. Now, they’re out of business.”
About 160 of the 715 storefronts that have been shuttered so far under Operation Padlock are in the Bronx, according to the spokesman.
South Bronx residents have been weighing the benefits and drawbacks of the new cannabis industry in the neighborhood since legislation passed in 2022 legalizing sales.
Community Board 1 Chairwoman Clarisa Alayeto said the board is glad to see that law enforcement is keeping a close eye on illegal pot shops in areas in the South Bronx where locals have tipped them off.
“He kept his word on where community board members and residents have been expressing concerns,” Alayeto said of the sheriff, adding that illegal dealers’ attempts to lure young people is worrying. “They make packages with candy labels. They try to make the products look fun.”
Board 1 members also have their feelers out for dispensaries operating illegally, Alayeto said.
“Our licensing committee is very strict. We’re out and we’re talking to people (in Mott Haven, Melrose and Port Morris) about this,” she said.
The board’s Economic Development, Housing and Zoning committee has denied the applications of most of the applicants who have come in front of them since the beginning of the year, and has instituted a policy requiring all applicants to come personally in front of the committee. To date, there is only one legally licensed cannabis dispensary in the district, at 2412 Third Avenue.
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