Feds raid Oaksterdam U.

[NorCalHal]

Oakland's Oaksterdam University was taken over by federal officials Monday morning.
Officers wearing U.S. Marshals, IRS and DEA jackets swarmed the Oakland medical marijuana facility on Broadway before 8 a.m. Investigators put yellow crime tape around the entire building.
The nearby Oaksterdam Museum was also being blocked off, according to NBC Bay Area Christie Smith as was the Oaksterdam gift shop and the Oakland Cannabis Buyers Cooperative.
In all, at least four locations were sealed off by the feds.
Officials on the scene were not commenting on their purpose other than to say that is what part of "an ongoing investigation." A spokeswoman for the IRS said that the investigation was under seal in a Northern District Court.
Oaksterdam is a cannabis college was founded in 2007

 

[NorCalHal]

Haha...Take that Richard Lee! Hope they have wheelchair ramps in prison.

 

[OGKushman]

Why????

 

[NorCalHal]

Sealed warrent. My guess is taxes.

 

[ston-loc]

Just got online and was gonna post this too. Heard it all over the news this am. No details, just "sealed ongoing investigation".

 

[Roddy]

Ouch!

 

[NorCalHal]

IMO, he did things over the top. He laughed at the feds, and they ain't going to have it.
Basically, he was teaching folks how to grow, and them selling them overpriced clones to fo it. This is going to be a big one.

Then, 3 hours later, some student walked into a University in Oakland and dhot a bunch of people. Oaklands going crazy today! Springtime in Cali.

 

[Locked]

Isn't he the arogant prick?

 

[Roddy]

IMO, he did things over the top. He laughed at the feds, and they ain't going to have it.
Basically, he was teaching folks how to grow, and them selling them overpriced clones to fo it. This is going to be a big one.

Then, 3 hours later, some student walked into a University in Oakland and dhot a bunch of people. Oaklands going crazy today! Springtime in Cali.

5 dead...sad! Sorry, latest said 7 dead.

 

[orangesunshine]

OAKSTERDAM RAIDED - PROTEST FEDERAL RAIDS APRIL 3rd in San Francisco
Medical marijuana supporters will be rallying to protest the
federal attack on California's cannabis collectives tomorrow April 3rd
at San Francisco City Hall (Polk St), 11am - 1 pm, with a march to the
US Federal Building (450 Golden Gate). <hxxp://www.canorml.org/SFUnited.pdf
>

OAKLAND, Apr 2nd - Agents of the DEA, IRS and Federal Marshall's
office converged on Oaksterdam to raid Richard Lee's Oaksterdam
University, the Oaksterdam Museum, the Blue Sky Coffee Shop, the
Oaksterdam Gift Shop and other locations, including Lee's apartment.
Lee was detained but not arrested. Lee, a prominent advocate of
marijuana legalization, co-sponsored Oakland's 2004 "tax and
regulate" initiative, Measure Z, which won 65% of the vote, and was
the primary sponsor of California's 2010 Prop 19 legalization
initiative.
Scores of angry protesters shouted "Shame" and "DEA go away" as
agents carried off evidence, including copious marijuana plants, from
the scene. Lee's Blue Sky Coffee Shop is one of four licensed
collectives operating under Oakland's pioneering dispensary ordinance,
the first in the nation.
Cal NORML director Dale Gieringer denounced today's raid as
"bankrupt drug police state thuggery."
Oakland police were needed to control the crowd, which spilled
out into the middle of Broadway. (Meanwhile, as federal agents were
causing trouble in Oaksterdam, more Oakland police were called in to
respond to a fatal school shoot-out that left seven dead elsewhere in
the city). A couple of protesters were arrested for interfering with
federal agents, including Danielle Schumacher, who tried to block an
IRS car, and Jose Gutierrez, who was shoved and beaten by DEA agents
forcing their way through the crowd.
Oakland city council member Rebecca Kaplan and Alameda County
Supervisor Nate Miley denounced the raids. In a written statement,
Miley declared, "I am really shocked and saddened by the actions of
the federal government in targeting Oaksterdam and Richard Lee in
their efforts to help individuals who are in need of medical cannabis
as well as educating their caregivers. It&#8217;s unfortunate that the
federal government has chosen to ignore their own policies that were
issued by the US Attorney General not to interfere with states that
have enacted laws regulating medical marijuana."
California NORML urges supporters to protest to President Obama
about failing to honor his campaign pledge to respect state medical
marijuana laws: To contact the President, visit: <hxxp://canorml.org/obama
>.

Dale Gieringer -dale "AT" canorml.org[
California NORML xxx.canorml.org
510-540-1066 / FAX 510-849-3974

 

[nvthis]

Damn, makes you wonder if HS is next.. Scary stuff.. Richard "****" Lee is an arrogant pr!@k, but you really hate to see anyone harrassed by the feds for (M)MJ.. It's just not good.

The funny thing is that I doubt Oak U would knowingly foul their taxes. They are far too savvy and been around too long. To do that, being who they were and what they did, would just simply be suicidal.

You know, it doesn't really matter who you are or who you know.. If the feds are determined to find a boogyman in your closet, then that's exactly what they'll find. To them, there is truly one under every freakin' rock... Anslinger would be proud RIGHT NOW! Crazy times.....

 

[NorCalHal]

I agree, Richard is a jerk, but yes, it sucks the feds came in for any reason.
I had a few friends who went to Bluesky to get cuts yesterady and found the Feds lurking. They told me it was crazy ugly. Folks were taunting the agents verbally to no end...gotta love it.
After conversations with folks, the best guess is Richard was not paying traxes on everything. I ban agree with this, as I know he does not.
One big issue is where he came up with 1.5 mil of his own monies for the Prop 19. Under State law, you are only entiled to around $12,000 a month salery for operating a collective. Unless he saved his money for years, he has a lot of explaining to do.

Not to worried about Harborside, they are truly following the law, and I think raiding Harborside would set off a riot. People know about Richard in town, and they are not going to go crazy for him, a few small protests, but nothing too big is my guess.

All they are doing is driving the price of herb back up.

 

[nvthis]

Crazy, Hal.. If he didn't pay his taxes, then even he cannot argue that he didn't have this coming... What a selfdestructive rube..

Although... I thought Lee was the only person on earth allowed to be set up as a "for profit" organization? Wasn't that his whole deal from the beginning?

you're right about HS.. If anything, I am sure NatGeo (or whatever channel carries that show) will put up enough to pad the federal pockets and keep their corrupted a$$e$ preoccupied for a little while..

In my younger years I was a flag carrying hyperpatriot. Man, our government sure is making it tough to be an American these days.. We need a revolution in a big way....

 

[bho_expertz]

The whole world needs that revolution ... In this side of the pound it would be greatly appreciatted.

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

It sounds like this is about taxes and probably a lot of taxes, rather than being a mmj thing. If he is not paying taxes, well.....hey that is what happens...

 

[7greeneyes]

You can poke the bear only so many times before it decides you're lunch. Just like Emery, u go flouting Federal Law around, making the feds look like fools, of course they'll find ANYTHING on you. That's how they got Capone(tho his crimes were completely more heinous and nowhere near comparable in nature then mr. Lee's) ...taxes...of all things...

 

[The Effen Gee]

Mess with the bull, get raped in the butt. End of story.

Us marshalls and IRS?

Oh Richard, what did you do this time? Forget to pay off some high profile debts post prop 19?

Woops!

 

[Irish]

so does this mean time magazine cover is out?

 

[YYZ Skinhead]

Will this affect the Bay Area dispensaries that aren't owned by this dude?

 

[PartyBro420]

I can't imagine it would affect any dispensaries not tied to him. It really doesn't sound at all like it's a MMJ issue. I've never heard of the IRS involving themselves in federal investigations based on "contraband"

To me... If the Marshals and IRS got involved, it sounds like someone involved in there somewhere may be wanted for tax related offence in more than just cali.