Hochul: State shut down 100-plus illegal weed shops in 3 weeks

June 18, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

Share this:

NEW YORK — NEW YORK STATE SHUTTERED more than 100 illicit smoke shops over three weeks, Gov. Kathy Hochul said at a press conference with Mayor Eric Adams on Tuesday. The crackdown by the NYS Cannabis Enforcement Task Force has directly contributed to a 27% increase in legal cannabis sales in areas impacted by these enforcement activities, she added. Adams said the city’s Operation Padlock to Protect has shut down almost 400 smoke shops, seized $13.3 million in illegal products and imposed more than $30 million in fines and penalties. Leeann Mata, the CEO of the legal Matawana cannabis shop in Park Slope, said her business has doubled since illegal shops were closed in her neighborhood.

Not all illegal smoke shops remain closed after they are padlocked. The former Exotic smoke shop in Brooklyn Heights, for example, reopened under a different business structure within a week after being closed by the city.

✰✰✰