San Diego

Authorities Raid Illegal Pot Chain Stores Posing as Church in Miramar, Lakeside: SDPD

The name of the pot organization claims to be a Native American church, said police

San Diego police raided two illegal pot dispensaries operated by the same owner in Miramar and Lakeside Thursday, claiming to be part of a Native American church.

Both businesses operated under the name of "ONAC." The organization's name is registered as a church, said San Diego Police Department (SDPD) Lt. Matt Novak from the narcotics unit.

Around 9 a.m., the SDPD Narcotics Unit worked with the San Diego County Sheriff's Department (SDSO) to serve search warrants at both dispensaries.

While raiding the dispensaries, officers seized 12 pounds of high-grade marijuana, 626 edibles, 404 concentrates, along with business documents and cash, said Novak.

The dispensaries were clearly associated with each other, police said.

One of the dispensaries, ONAC Miramar Healing Center, is located on Arjons Drive, just north of Miramar Road in San Diego. The other dispensary, ONAC Lakeside, is off Interstate 8, near Los Coches Road in Lakeside.

The connection between the dispensaries was revealed three weeks ago, after police served a search warrant at the ONAC Miramar dispensary. New information collected in the search led to the discovery of the ONAC Lakeside dispensary.

Shortly after the raid, the ONAC Miramar dispensary immediately re-opened and tried to keep running the business as usual, said police.

The continued operation of the ONAC dispensaries prompted officers to obtain more search warrants.

Authorities said the owner of the shops was not present during the raids but has been identified. Police said the owner will face charges for operating illegal businesses in the city and county, marijuana sales and other associated charges. The owner's name was not released.

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