Emergency License Suspensions issued for Port Angeles’ North Coast Concentrates

OLYMPIA– The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (WSLCB) issued two emergency marijuana license suspensions on Friday, November 2, 2018 for North Coast Concentrates, with locations at 2933 E Highway 101 and 52433 Highway 112 in Port Angeles. The suspensions are effective for 180 days beginning November 2, 2018 until May 1, 2019. During that time the WSLCB will seek permanent revocation of the licenses.

On September 20, 2018 an employee of North Coast Concentrates was pulled over by Lower Elwha Police, during the course of the traffic stop officers found 112 grams of traceable marijuana concentrates, three large jars and a large tote bin of untraced dried marijuana flower. The products were not manifested in the state traceability system. Subsequent investigation by WSLCB officers revealed that the untraced product had been removed from the licensees grow operation and that the traced concentrates were returned from a marijuana retailer in Tacoma several weeks earlier.

Seized text messages from the employee’s cellphone indicated that the licensee was aware of both the diversion and the selling of product on the black market. While executing the suspension orders, officers seized 556 pounds of marijuana flower product, 24 pounds of marijuana oil and 204 plants from both locations.

Due to the severity of these violations and the risk of diversion should the business remain open the Board issued the emergency suspensions. Emergency suspensions represent an extraordinary exercise of the state’s power and the WSLCB is mandated to ensure that an emergency suspension is reasonable, justifiable and legal in every way. The WSLCB issued one emergency suspension in 2017, and six in 2018.