Mahnomen store shut down for alleged illegal cannabis sales
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A store in Mahnomen, Minn., that was allegedly selling cannabis illegally was shut down on Wednesday, according to the White Earth Nation.
The dispensary that was shut down is separate from an operation authorized by White Earth tribal officials, which started selling marijuana for recreational use this week.
A statement from White Earth officials said no one can produce or sell cannabis on the reservation without a license issued by the White Earth Medicinal Cannabis Control Commission.
“The commission is authorized to issue a notice of seizure to any person or entity that is found to possess or sell illegal cannabis. The commission will seize and destroy any illegal cannabis within the exterior boundaries of the White Earth Reservation,” a statement from the White Earth Band of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe said.
Regulating cannabis sales is a matter of safety, said White Earth Nation Chairman Michael Fairbanks.
“The reason White Earth Nation takes care to regulate cannabis is so that one is hurt and no one is harmed. And so everyone is satisfied and happy with the product at our dispensary,” he said.
Fairbanks went on to say that White Earth may work with tribal members interested the cannabis industry. “We need to do a lot of education with people first,” he said.
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