District regulators have shut down three more unlicensed cannabis retailers and arrested six people as part of an ongoing crackdown on the city’s illicit cannabis market, bringing the total number of storefront closures to 113 since enforcement powers were expanded in 2024.
The latest actions, carried out between May 26 and June 12 by the Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Administration (ABCA) and the Metropolitan Police Department, targeted businesses in Northwest and Southeast Washington that officials said were operating without the licenses required under D.C.’s regulated medical cannabis program.
Authorities padlocked Green Magic on Georgia Avenue NW, Smoke Island on Wisconsin Avenue NW and Top Mart on Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE. ABCA said each establishment was ordered closed because its operations posed an “imminent danger to public health and safety.”
The largest seizure occurred at Smoke Island, where investigators recovered nearly 30 pounds of cannabis along with THC-infused edibles and vape cartridges during a June 4 enforcement action. Four people were arrested at the location, including two Silver Spring residents, a Glen Burnie resident and a Washington, D.C., resident.
Earlier in the operation, authorities executed a closure order at Green Magic, seizing more than 16 pounds of cannabis, nearly 900 grams of psilocybin mushroom products and a variety of THC concentrates, waxes and resins. A 51-year-old Silver Spring resident was arrested.
The final closure took place June 12 at Top Mart, where authorities seized a small quantity of cannabis and arrested a 52-year-old Pasadena, Maryland, resident.
The enforcement actions represent the latest phase of the District’s effort to eliminate unlicensed cannabis retailers that flourished under the city’s former gray-market system. In 2024, the D.C. Council approved emergency legislation granting ABCA expanded authority to close businesses found to be selling cannabis without authorization.
That law, known as the Medical Cannabis Conditional License and Unlicensed Establishment Closure Clarification Emergency Amendment Act of 2024, allows regulators to quickly shutter unlicensed cannabis businesses through civil enforcement proceedings rather than relying solely on lengthy criminal investigations.
District officials have argued that the crackdown is necessary to protect consumers and support licensed operators participating in the regulated medical cannabis market. Since the law took effect on July 15, 2024, ABCA and MPD have conducted a sustained series of enforcement actions that have now resulted in the closure of 113 unlicensed cannabis businesses, according to ABCA, across the city.
Your ad here: Looking to reach an audience of cannabis industry professionals and investors in the DMV?
