Police descended on more than a dozen weed trucks in New York City’s Times Square on Tuesday in the latest crackdown on weed trucks in the city. But some locals say there are more serious crimes that should be the focus of the police.
It’s a backlash in response to what locals call an “open air drug market” due to unlicensed weed sellers in trucks. However, none of the trucks had permits to operate, as the permit was not yet available Retail licenses become available within a week on August 25.
The New York Police Department (NYPD) is fed up with the torrent of illegal cannabis trucks that can easily be found on the streets of New York City. Many locals agree.
New York Daily News Reports That one of the more prolific truck chains, “Weed World”, which mostly sold food, was forced to pay more than $200,000 in parking fine and about 12 trucks of the chain were cleared from the streets.
“If you’re looking to buy illegal cannabis from Weed World Bus at 5th Avenue & 40th Street, it’s no longer open for business,” NYPD Chief Jeffrey Madre wrote on Twitter about the seizures. “We don’t expect to open for business any time soon!”
On any given day, Tom Harris, president of the Times Square Alliance, said there are about half a dozen weed trucks parked in the immediate vicinity of Times Square. However, the responses on Twitter have been far from reaching a consensus.
Weed World said August 15 that it has paid $200,000 of the $500,000 in outstanding parking fines, and has set up an installment plan with the city’s Department of Finance. Last June, law enforcement Tow 12 trucks from Weed World He refused to release the trucks until the fines were paid. Weed World has also operated a brick-and-mortar store nearby, near Seventh Ave, and plans to obtain a permit as soon as it becomes available after attracting the attention of the New York Cannabis Control Board.
In the latest sweep, the New York Police Department released footage of 19 vehicles seized from city streets for allegedly selling cannabis products without permits.
The NYPD and other officials aren’t just chasing weed trucks. state officials slapped recently 17 cannabis operations (and trucks) in the storefront with cease-and-desist letters allegedly selling cannabis without a license, including Weed World on Seventh Ave. “There are no companies currently licensed to sell adult-use cannabis in the state of New York,” Tremaine Wright, president of the New York Cannabis Control Council, said in a statement.
New York officials It will begin accepting licenses to sell cannabis retail On August 25, the Office of Cannabis Management announced. License applications will be accepted for one month after an online portal is opened.
Bigger fish for frying
To be fair – cannabis isn’t Times Square’s only problem, and weed trucks may be the least of theirs. last year, Police closed a “24-hour bazaar” that was selling cocaine. These chores worked unseen for two years. In this case, the crew worked “clock shifts” at 43rd Street and Eighth Avenue, according to the New York Police Department and federal authorities.
The operation was open 24/7 and launched in December 2019, probably in one of the only places in America you can get away with for that long. The police called him “Operation Ghostbuster.”
The city also focuses on Safe injection sites with personnel for supervision. The The New York Times Reports indicate that on the first day of one site operation, crew members were able to reverse two overdose.
In the meantime, New York City Mayor Told New Yorkers to “Light Up”—until licensing begins and the market matures.
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