Sellers targeted B.C. minors via Snapchat to sell nicotine and THC vaping products, police say
Police on Vancouver Island have busted a vaping operation where nicotine- and THC-filled e-cigarettes were sold to youth at middle and high schools.
On Wednesday, Saanich police officers showed media a vape pen with a large dose of THC – the chemical that produces a marijuana high – seized as part of an investigation into a clandestine ring selling such products.
Const. Rob Winter, of the Saanich Police Department's Street Crime Unit, says some of the items seized contain "very high amounts" of THC – up to 98 per cent.
Officers began investigating after receiving a tip last November that adults were selling vape products to minors in public places.
Const. Markus Anastasiades said over the next several months, police observed people attending schools in Saanich and Greater Victoria.
Anastasiades added they were "selling vape products to minors on school grounds, in the parking lots at malls and in public spaces such as parks."
On Friday, police raided a business and seized more than $100,000 worth of goods. Among the items seized were vape products with flavours seemingly targeting young people, according to officers.
Anastasiades said it was concerning.
"These are banned substances," he said. "We can think of them much like tobacco products, if people were selling cigarettes, tobacco to youth at schools."
He added the sellers would contact kids primarily on the social media platform Snapchat, then bring vape pens and liquids to meet-up spots at schools and malls, disguising the products in food delivery bags or plastic containers. The sellers even had point-of-sale machines so kids could tap and go.
Stores can't sell to those under age 18, but it's unclear if any law was broken.
"This is a federal statute, not a criminal code offense," Anastasiades explained. "So there's agencies, external federal agencies that will be looking at this file that we've already consulted with."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
A newspaper says video of Prince William and Kate should halt royal rumour mill. That's a tall order
Prince William and his wife Catherine have been filmed at a farm shop near their Windsor home, The Sun newspaper reported -- the first footage of Kate since she had abdominal surgery for an unspecified condition two months ago.
'You ask for your money, they disappear': Ontario man loses $17K to AI crypto scam
A Toronto man is spreading the word of a cryptocurrency scam that lures victims using AI-generated news sites after he lost $17,000 in investments.
Hertz CEO out following electric car 'horror show'
The company, which announced in January it was selling 20,000 of the electric vehicles in its fleet, or about a third of the EVs it owned, is now replacing the CEO who helped build up that fleet, giving it the company’s fifth boss in just four years.
High thoughts: The habits of Canadian cannabis users are revealed in a new StatCan report
Statistics Canada has conducted a series of surveys to measure the impacts of legalized cannabis since the Cannabis Act took effect in 2018. The latest one, the 2023 National Cannabis Survey, sheds light on users' preferences and habits last year.
Demand soars for solar eclipse glasses in Canada. Are they worth buying?
The demand for total solar eclipse glasses used to safely view the rare celestial event has been ramping up as sellers, along with astronomy and eye-care experts in Canada, warn that viewing the eclipse with the naked eye is dangerous.
Trump says Jews who vote for Democrats 'hate Israel' and their religion
Former U.S. president Donald Trump on Monday charged that Jews who vote for Democrats 'hate Israel' and hate 'their religion,' igniting a firestorm of criticism from the White House and Jewish leaders.
Toronto family doctor who called patient's body 'perfect' suspended for 3 months: tribunal
A family doctor in Toronto has been suspended for three months after a disciplinary tribunal found that he failed to follow proper protocols while examining a patient's breasts and made inappropriate comments about her body.
Freddie Mercury's home is on the market for first time since 1980 minus his 'exquisite clutter'
Freddie Mercury's sanctuary in London, where he lived the last decade of his life, is on sale for the first time in nearly half a century -- minus his "exquisite clutter."
'The lost season': Winter comes to a close as Canada's warmest on record
The warmest winter on record could have far-reaching effects on everything from wildfire season to erosion, climatologists say, while offering a preview of what the season could resemble in the not-so-distant future unless steps are taken to cut greenhouse gas emissions.