Stamford Woman Charged In Connection With Smoke Shop Raid: Norwalk PD

STAMFORD, CT — Illegal cannabis products were seized Wednesday during a raid of a smoke shop on Westport Avenue in Norwalk, according to police, and a Stamford woman was arrested.

Police, armed with a search warrant, raided the ZaZa Smoke & Convenience Store at 336 Westport Ave., as part of the department's ongoing investigation into smoke shops that sell cannabis without a cannabis license.

Cynthia Rojas, 21, of Stamford, was charged with the following:

• Possession > 1.5, 5, 8oz Cannabis 21>
• Sale of 1KG or more Cannabis-sbs
• Illegal Sell/Manufacture Cannabis > 18
• Possession with intent to sell 1KG or more of Cannibis
• Use of Drug Paraphernalia

Rojas's relation to the store was not disclosed. She was released after posting a $500 bond, and is scheduled to appear in Stamford Superior Court on Sept. 24.

In Connecticut, it is illegal to sell products with a total THC concentration greater than 0.3 percent without a cannabis license issued by the Department of Consumer Protection.

"Police received new information that this location was selling marijuana and products that were well above the legal THC level," wrote Norwalk Police Sgt. Ryan Evarts in a statement. "This proved to be the case, as several hundred products that contained greater than .3 percent THC were found in the store."

Marijuana, as well as the THC gummies were seized from the store, with each gummy containing 50mg of THC when the legal amount per gummy is 1mg, according to Evarts. The marijuana was packaged in various ways, with misleading labels.

An undisclosed amount of cash was also seized from the shop, and the department will apply to keep it through the Asset Forfeiture Statutes, Evarts added.

— By Patch Editor Alfred Branch