Bridgeport Cannabis Store Part Of $416,000 Settlement With CT Regulators: Attorney General

BRIDGEPORT, CT — Connecticut Attorney General William Tong announced Monday that three cannabis businesses operating under the Crisp Cannabis brand and their prospective buyer have agreed to pay $416,000 to settle allegations that they violated state cannabis, antitrust and consumer protection laws.

The settlement involves three licensed cannabis establishments, including one in Bridgeport; Mohave CT LLC, the company seeking to acquire them; and the principals of all the entities, Tong’s office said. The other impacted Crisp Cannabis locations are in East Hartford and Cromwell.

According to the attorney general’s investigation, the businesses transferred operational control and coordinated their activities before notifying state regulators of a material ownership change, as required under Connecticut’s adult-use cannabis law. Investigators said Mohave CT assumed decision-making authority and aligned branding, staffing and operations across the three stores for more than 100 days before providing notice to the state.

State law requires cannabis license holders to notify regulators and observe a waiting period before transferring control or ownership, so regulators can review the transaction for competitive and public-interest concerns.

The attorney general also alleged that the companies exchanged sensitive business information, including pricing and operational data, and coordinated their commercial strategies, which state officials said reduced competition among the three businesses.

Under the settlement, the companies and their principals will pay $104,000 within 30 days and an additional $312,000 that will be deferred and payable if they fail to comply with the agreement. The parties also agreed to implement an antitrust compliance program and to avoid future violations of Connecticut’s cannabis, antitrust and unfair trade practices laws.

The agreement will remain in effect for three years, during which time the attorney general’s office will monitor compliance. State officials said the companies cooperated with the investigation.

Assistant Attorney General Julián Quiñones and Nicole Demers, deputy associate attorney general and chief of the Antitrust Section, worked on the case.