North Texas Stores Raided, CBD Products Seized

Authored by nbcdfw.com and submitted by REHTONA_YRT

Duncanville police say they removed hundreds of pounds of CBD products from two stores, along with more than 30 pounds of what they described as marijuana, in what the stores' owners described as a big misunderstanding. (Published Tuesday, March 19, 2019)

Duncanville police say they removed hundreds of pounds of CBD products from two stores, along with more than 30 pounds of what they described as marijuana, in what the stores’ owners described as a big misunderstanding.

They say the goods seized are, instead, derived from hemp, another member of the cannabis family that can look and smell like marijuana, but does not produce a high.

The Friday afternoon police raids, at the GM Tobacco stores in Duncanville and Lancaster, left employees stunned.

"I noticed two officers come in. One really aggressively ordered me basically away from my register," said one clerk in Lancaster.

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Amy Wazwaz, who owns the stores with her husband, said police seized more than $50,000 worth of CBD products.

"They took everything that was remotely related to CBD," Wazwaz said, adding that she would have allowed the police to test anything in her stores, if they’d simply asked.

Police have made no arrests, but noted in a statement that the investigation is still ongoing and evidence is being processed.

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Experts say CBD from hemp contains no THC, or just trace amounts of THC, the substance that produces a high in marijuana.

"This isn't a drug dealer. These aren't drug dealers. This isn't a drug house," said the owners' attorney, Daniel Sullivan, standing next to his client at the store in Duncanville.

But in a statement to NBC 5 Investigates, Duncanville police said they "seized over 30 pounds of marijuana," along with "hundreds of pounds of CBD oil in various forms, weapons and other evidence pertinent to the case."

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Prior to the raids, police conducted undercover buys at the stores, and subsequent lab tests showed that some of the products were "identified as marijuana," a search warrant affidavit said.

The affidavit, however, did not list the percentage of THC found in those products.

Wazwaz told NBC 5 Investigates that anything that looked like marijuana was, instead, CBD hemp flower – buds from the hemp plant that look like marijuana, but contain little or no THC.

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A police inventory list that was left with the shop owners said the goods seized included bags of what was described as "apparent marijuana products labeled (as) hemp flower."

"If you come into the shop looking to get high, you are going to leave disappointed," said Sullivan, the owners' attorney.

"There is nothing in the shop that would get you high," he said.

Shop Owners React to CBD Debate

As North Texans continue to question whether they can use, or continue to use, the popular CBD oil for their aches and pains, one shop owner has decided to take down the product, fearing the possibility of a police raid. (Published Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2019)

In Texas, the laws on CBD and hemp are murky, with the state still not authorizing the farming of hemp, even though federal law now allows it.

In addition, some district attorneys consider hemp-derived CBD as illegal, while others say they will not prosecute until the law becomes clearer on how to deal with the fast-growing CBD craze, which supporters say can treat a multitude of ailments.

A bill is currently pending in the state legislature that would legalize hemp and CBD.

But even as lawmakers and law enforcement debate the legalities of CBD, shops selling the product have already opened up throughout the state, selling to people looking to treat pain, anxiety and other ailments.

At the tobacco shop in Duncanville, Wazwaz said her business is paying the price for the confusion that surrounds the selling of hemp and CBD.

"They took all the money from the cash register, all the money from our safe," she said of the police.

CBD Legality Up to State Legislators, Tarrant DA Says

The Tarrant County District Attorney's Office issued a statement on the legality of CBD oil in Texas Tuesday following a series of reports last week by NBC 5 Investigates. (Published Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2019)

But the Duncanville Police Department is offering no apologies, with Assistant Police Chief Mark LiVigni, noting in a statement: "Marijuana is illegal in the state of Texas."

newnamesam on March 20th, 2019 at 14:45 UTC »

"They took all of the money from our safe and all the money from our customers"

"They ordered me to give them all the cash in my wallet"

"They ordered me to step away from the register"

"No arrests"

Gee... I wonder what this was really about.

Jimmyg100 on March 20th, 2019 at 14:09 UTC »

CBD? Seriously? What next, are they gonna go into a Whole Foods and confiscate all the hemp seeds?

I put CBD in my freaking coffee. Melatonin is more potent than that shit.

Edit: Just wanted to say it's really interesting reading all these replies that range from "CBD is just a placebo" to "CBD has changed my life." I really think it's a combination of how tolerant people are, and what they expect to get out of it. All I can say is if you're curious just try it.

BoringArchivist on March 20th, 2019 at 13:35 UTC »

So, the police robbed a store.