An attempted armed robbery at an East Vancouver herb store fails

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A single thief got more than he bargained for when he attempted to rob a cannabis store in Canada. Kingsway Cannabis in East Vancouver, British Columbia to publish A 20-second video clip posted on Twitter on March 14, showing a botched armed robbery attempt the night before.

CTV Vancouver reports That an armed robbery was captured on video and shared online. The video shows a man – likely with no experience of crime – breaking into the store on March 13 shortly after 8 p.m.

The man in the video points what appears to be a gun at a woman running from the counter. The man tries to go behind the counter, but a half-closed door blocks his way.

Then the guy tries to rip out the log, but can’t seem to try hard enough, gives up, and then runs out of the store empty-handed. Apparently the man wasn’t ready to open the cash register.

The Vancouver Police Department is investigating the incident. But since there was likely a firearm involved, unless it was a replica, the police are taking the incident very seriously.

“We don’t know if this was a real gun or a fake gun. However, this is terrifying for everyone involved. Whether this is a cannabis store or a candy store, it’s terrifying no matter where it happened,” said VPD Cst. Tanja Visentin.

Kingsway Cannabis posted the video and also asked if Health Canada’s requirements actually help.

Protecting minors from seeing weeds or causing dangers?

Because the store’s windows were boarded up, the female employee with a gun to her face could not see the approaching suspect. “Maybe it is time for the government to rethink mandatory window frosting,” Kingsway Cannabis tweeted.

Health Canada requires that stores prevent minors from viewing cannabis products, i.e. frosted windows, but it’s not good when an intruder approaches. Health Canada Requires Shops ensure that cannabis or accessories are not visible from outside the premises to protect them from view of minors.

The British Columbia government has already dropped the requirement for frosted windows, but Health Canada still requires cannabis stores to have frosted windows in order to maintain compliance.

Other stores have had the same problem, and they say it’s because window coverings make things more dangerous.

iHeart Radio reported that Mood Cannabis in Nanaimo has recently had back-to-back robberies, blaming it on a visibility requirement.

“I cannot provide a safe environment for my employees due to the regulations (right now),” Kingsway Cannabis Owner Chuck Farabioff Tell I heart radio. “I’m going to rally a bunch of shopkeepers I know in the lower mainland and inland because they say ‘you can’t fight the government’, but we’re going to give it a great shot.”

“After coming in for the second time we removed the window coverings for our employees and customers,” said Corey Waldron, owner of Mood Cannabis. A cannabis inspector told him to replace the window coverings because the cannabis was visible from the street. “This regulation was based entirely on stigma and there is no rationale behind it,” Waldron said. “I don’t see the attractiveness of our youth by seeing this (cute) packaging.”

Health Canada is Currently under review If the applicable rules and regulations are in effect, three years after the license for retail sales in the country.

The Cannabis Council of Canada is pleading to scrap the visibility requirement on the grounds that it makes stores targets for thieves, and it also makes stores unattractive.