5 UWS Smoke Shops Punished For Illegal Weed Sales: DA

UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — Nearly a dozen smoke shops were punished by the Manhattan District Attorney's Office on Tuesday for illegally selling cannabis, and nearly half of them are on the Upper West Side.

The announcement came after an ongoing criminal investigation into 11 illegal and unlicensed cannabis stores owned by Rami Alzandani, including five on the Upper West Side.

1. Lincoln Convenience Corp: 2074 Broadway (Between 71st and 72nd streets)
2. West Coast Convenience Corp: 176 W. 72nd St.
3. Jacks Convenience Corp: 2812 Broadway (Near corner of 109th Street)
4. Ignite Convenience Corp: 214 W. 72nd St.
5. Amsterdam Varieties Corp: 228 Amsterdam Ave. (Near corner of West 70th Street)

Following a non-prosecution agreement, Alzandani will have to cough up $103,000 in restitution to New York State Department of Tax and Finance and forfeit an additional $300,000 in illegal proceeds.

Additionally, four of the stores, including the Upper West Side's Jacks Convenience and West Coast Convenience, pled guilty to one count of Criminal Possession of Cannabis, and were sentenced to a conditional discharge and another $5,000 fine.

“Today there are fewer illegal cannabis shops on the Upper West Side thanks to DA Bragg,” Council Member Gale Brewer said in a news release. “Two of the stores were selling within half a block of three DOE schools and a public playground.

"I believe we are seeing a turning point when it comes to illegal shops, and this investigation shows something we have suspected all along, which is common ownership of multiple unlicensed stores," she added.

Brewer has previously voiced her frustration about the proliferation of smoke shops on the Upper West Side, and has taken an active role in inspections from the NYC Sheriff's Office and hearings held by the Oversight and Investigations Committee.

For the next three years, Alzandani's stores will be subject to continued inspections without prior notification, and must submit a written certificate every three months affirming cannabis is not being sold.

The criminal case from the Manhattan District Attorney's Office was initiated following undercover purchases by the office at all of the stores.

The first licensed marijuana dispensary opened in Lower Manhattan at the end of the year. The opening came more than a year after New York legalized the use of recreational marijuana in March 2021.

While regulations and approvals are still being decided on by the Office of Cannabis Management, smoke shops have continued to take advantage of the gap in the process.

“Cannabis legalization in New York State was designed to advance racial equity and fairness, and the rules must be followed," Bragg said in a news release. "Public safety is also harmed when there is such a huge proliferation of unlicensed and unregulated storefronts selling cannabis products that have not been properly inspected."