Sudbury police have charged a 47-year-old Val Caron man with drug offences after officers found a pot grow op on his property on Sept. 14.
Police said they received information on Sept. 13 about someone manufacturing cannabis products in contravention of the Cannabis Act.
Officers executed a search warrant at the home on Sept. 14.
As a result, police found and seized more than $660,000 of cannabis product, production and distribution equipment and food supplies, as well as $585 in Canadian currency.
The suspect is charged with possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000, possession of cannabis unlawfully for the purpose of distribution and production of illicit cannabis.
Although cannabis possession and production has been legalized, it is regulated and it has always remained a criminal offence to produce, sell, distribute, import/export and use cannabis outside of the parameters of both the provincial and federal legislation, specifically the Cannabis Act, said Greater Sudbury Police Service.
It remains the role of police to enforce and investigate criminal cannabis incidents and focus on the apprehension and disruption of those who participate in a criminal enterprise of exploiting and ignoring the governing legislation surrounding cannabis and related products.
Police would like to remind the public that the only place to purchase cannabis edibles legally is through outlets licenced by the province or the provincial Online Cannabis Store.
“The illegal cannabis product operations are not regulated by the health unit and have no quality control mechanisms,” said police in a news release. “They could be made in an area lacking proper hygiene and safe food-handling procedures, resulting in unsafe edibles.”
For more information on Food Safety, refer to www.phsd.ca
