The Antelope Valley Times

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Marijuana dispensary raided in Lancaster, 3 arrested

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[Image courtesy LASD]
LANCASTER – Two men and a woman were arrested Friday morning when deputies raided a marijuana dispensary in Lancaster, authorities said.

The bust happened around 11 a.m. Friday, Feb. 2, on the 100 block of West Pillsbury Street, according to a news release from the Lancaster Sheriff’s Station.

“The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Marijuana Dispensary Task Force and deputies from the Lancaster Sheriff’s Station served a search warrant on an illegal dispensary,” the news release states.

“Over 100 pounds of cannabis product was seized and confiscated,” the news release states.

Babken Danielyan, 28, Mayra Montes–Alvarado, 24, and Christopher Avalos, 30, were arrested at the scene on suspicion of possession of cannabis.

The suspects were transported to Lancaster Sheriff’s Station and each booked on $20,000 bail.

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48 comments for "Marijuana dispensary raided in Lancaster, 3 arrested"

  1. I understand the average LEO would arrest his own grandmother if the Sarge told him to, but marijuana has been legalized. Done. Legal. The prohibitionists lost. What is an illegal dispensary, anyway? Does anybody even care other than over-time collecting cops making a nice living with this BS garbage? I know people growing tons of pot in their backyards and garages and spare bedrooms – they practically give it away they have such large quantities on hand. What is raiding a dispensary going to achieve? I heard some guy is reinventing the wheel without a license, go raid his operation.

  2. LASD broke the law. All officers having participated in this illegal raid, plus the officers having planned and ordered this illegal raid, are in gross violation of statute, and should be prosecuted

    • Its not an illegal raid since they didn’t have a license too sell pot. He or she is a street drug dealer with a store.

  3. American entrepreneur, operating a marijuana dispensary, who makes an administrative error, expect L.A. County Sheriff thugs to raid the place, bust your skull, and confiscate your worldly wealth. Sanctuary city, different rules for different people, if you’re a parasite from Mexico, here illegally, expect L.A. County Sheriffs to roll out the red carpet, “welcome to Mexi-fornia!”

    • Dude your psychotic.. Laugh out loud….. Why don’t you go back to whatever country your ancestors came from illegally.. Stealing the land of the natives.. No honor what so ever.. And from you’re two cents on your post you’re obviously ignorant…. Maybe you should go live in Mexico it would be the same thing as you living here…. think before you publicly put your thoughts out in public boy… You got no room to say crap… And furthermore if you’re so much about upholding the laws.. Respect the laws that have passed that give people what they need.. You must be such a peach to have around.. Haha.. Go on home… Boy… By yourself!

  4. Watch LIVE PD on A&E Friday and Saturday nights. Most of the manpower goes into finding minute quantities of marijuana. Think of the savings if you could reduce Sheriff’s employment by 25% through attrition because they were no longer needed.

  5. Car dealerships operating unlicensed, bet you coffee and doughnuts don’t see L.A. SWAT tazering the salesmen, frisking, fondling and feeling-up the female staffers, bludgeoning the finance guy with their night sticks, cuffing the mechanics and dragging them off into the paddy wagon, confiscating every car on the lot, do you?

    • I knew a guy who did appliance repairs. Sometimes he’d tell people what it would take to fix something and they’d say they just wanted a new one and ask him to haul away the old one and hook up the new one. So he’d fix them up and sell them. Eventually he got busted for running an “unlicensed appliance sales business”…but you’re right, when code enforcement (not LASD) came along they didn’t beat him up, or cuff him. No copping feels on his wife and daughter, who were home at the time. They didn’t drag all the appliances out of his garage, and certainly didn’t rip the refrigerator out of his kitchen.

      Overall, “busting” an unlicensed business seemed pretty civil…until we started talking about a business that competes with Mayor Wrecks and his cronies. But we’ve all seen this before. The Lancaster station is more interested in doing Wrecks’ bidding than they are in following the law. Wonder how much the lawsuits will cost the city and the county this time.

      • … a driveling intellectual lightweight, overreacting and over-posting, note to webmaster: we need a flood-check on Tim Scott, if you please –

        • Usually they put checks on name calling posters who make no real contribution, if they put checks on anything.

      • This did not have anything to do with the mayor of Lancaster. A similar bust happened in Palmdale in 2015 that didn’t have anything to do with the mayor of Palmdale, Tim Scott.

        • The mayor of Palmdale in 2015 wasn’t in the marijuana growing business. The mayor of Lancaster is in the marijuana growing business. Thinking that he “has nothing to do with” his competition being put out of business by his enforcers is a little wild, don’t you think?

          By the way…which former arson investigator turned expert on the fire hazards associated with illegal marijuana growing facilities do you think that Wrecks and Visco hired as a “consultant” on their pot growing project? Just to make sure there were no fire hazards…and of course as a way of paying him off for voting their way on the Palmdale City Council.

          Go on…take a guess.

          • The mayor of Lancaster saw to it that his political contributor and business partner got the first pot grow permit issued in Lancaster.

            He is also seeing to it that his councilmen Hoffbauer and Bishop vote as he tells them to.

          • You will never find the truth, facts, evidence, etc., from a bunch of commenters that keep spreading their paranoia about every elected politician in Palmdale, and Lancaster. Let the condemnations begin for Hofbauer, Bishop, Ledford, Visco, Parris, and all the rest of them, instead of actually doing something to lift up this community with positive actions. Miserable people that can’t find anything to do but tear down this community with constant negative comments.

          • What source did you find to gather these so called facts? I have to say Tim Scott, your vicious accusations toward elected officials in Palmdale are nothing more than destructive lie’s unless you come forth with proof. Do you think because you say something, it is automatically true? People like you that try to harm this community with lie’s, and think nothing of destroying a persons reputation with NO proof.

          • There are thousands of us in Palmdale that are happy with Steven Hofbauer and Austin Bishop. Bless the people that work toward a thriving positive community. There will always be the negative people that see nothing but the worst in everything. Rise above them and keep up the good work!

          • If you think Hofbauer and Bishop are working towards anything but remaking Palmdale in the image of Lancaster you need to take a closer look at their actions…and where they draw their pay.

          • Parris and Visco have done nothing for this community except take money from it to line their pockets. They both have huge houses outside the AV. Parris has a $3 million dollar house in Laguna with ocean views.

            They use tools like Crist, Mercy, Hofbauer, and Bishop to do their bidding. If you are on the take or in the club, you can get VIP seats at Lancaster events and some campaign donations.

            The people of Palmdale need a serious wake up call. They are being led by self-seeking small minded thinkers. I hesitate to use the word thinker.

  6. Illegal dealer not illegal drugs. Big difference. They should get a fine for operating without a license.

  7. Much of the100 pounds of cannabis (product) was edibles considering brownies are mostly brownie and very little pot. If this place was open for more then a week, they were well into the profit end of their investment. No store keeps all the inventory on site anyway because the store is more of a customer locating tool. It’s a big game of Whack-A-Mole.

  8. Waste of time and money, can we just take care of the crackheads and tweakers roaming the streets instead?

  9. … illegal dispensary? Why the arrests? Why the 5 figure bail? Why the handcuffs? Why the Janet Reno ATF style storm-trooper tactics? Why the Crockett & Tubbs, Miami Vice, 80s style contraband raid? How come L.A. County Sheriff aren’t writing a common citation, for not having city or county applications in order? Come to think of it, this is now a code enforcement issue. This is no longer a police issue. Now an economic issue, an administrative issue, police shouldn’t even be involved. Shouldn’t even be news –

    • You are quite correct. Indeed, and not just by a little, L.A. County Sheriff are off base. A code enforcement issue, marijuana enforcement is no longer county sheriff turf –

      • [removed] ALL YOU LANCASTER SHERIFF’S YOU GUYS ARE PATHETIC AND USELESS GET TO THE REALLY CRIME NOT PEOPLE TRYING TO MAKE A LIVING GROW SOME [removed] LEAVE BUSINESS OWNERS AL ONE JUST CAUSE YOU CANT OPEN AND RUN YOUR OWN BUSINESS [removed]

          • Alexis, it is hard to take you serious if you are unaware of the Parris-Visco-Gilley Connection. In all seriousness, did you recently move to the Antelope Valley? Do you know about Tom Sheppard? Are you one of Rex’s paid bloggers?

          • Dear AV Truth: Please don’t take me seriously! I left Lancaster because of the appalling low voter turnout (11.2%). The apathy that abounds in Lancaster is very telling. I don’t care about the Parris-Visco-Gilley connection, and I stay away from all of the constant complaints because it doesn’t solve anything.

          • Alexis, have you ever thought that the apathy was a result of the Parris-Visco-Gilley connection? It one big incestuous festival where only the insiders can benefit. It is pretty discouraging to know that no matter what Rex wants, he gets, no matter how much it hurts other people.

            The more people are made aware of their shenanigans, the better chance we have of putting an end to them.

  10. Hell great job keep fueling the street dealers what a waste of time and my fucking tax dollars get real stop being lazy and fight real crime weed isn’t going anywhere

  11. Sure seems like this drug bust was a waste of time that could have been better used. Recreational MJ use has finally been voted in to be legal in this state and since that happened sales of MJ has dropped significantly since you cannot get a permit to sell it. Are they trying to get the street corner drug dealers rich, real quick? It seems like they have done more drug busts since it was made legal to buy and sell it. These guys they busted might get lucky and get a Liberal judge who will set them free without even a hand slap. He can’t send them to jail for selling something legal to sell. The only thing he can get them for is operating a business without a permit. What a waste of time.

    • As has happened in other states, the “legalization” has been corrupted into a wealth builder. Like liquor licenses, pot licenses will be doled out to the highest bidders and as political favors. The licensed operators, to improve their profits, will be enlisted as the front line troops in the war on unlicensed providers. Overall you should expect less pot, of lower quality, at higher prices…but it is a boon to political insiders and corrupt politicians, like Visco and Wrecks.

  12. How did they think they could open a pot store with no license and get away with it? Oh that’s right they were probably high when they thought of the idea.

  14. Cool. While you nitwits were chasing potheads, my boys moved a kilo of coke through town without a prob. $$$$ Keep up the good work, dummies. :)

    • No one can afford coke in the AV. Since you’ve been gone we’ve turned into the welfare community of California. A community full of people asking for money at every entrance and exit of every store.

      • Oh, they can afford it and it flows freely in AV. Just gotta know the secret handshake. Go raid some more LEGAL marijuana outlets, nitwits. Pathetic f…ks.

        • People are just unaware.. I’m constantly noticing exactly what you’re talking about. I point it out all the time.

      • If we stop giving those 20 somethings money maybe they will move on. Seriously why are there so many freakin’ young pan handlers?

          • My daughters have found jobs, and one may have found a career. Another option is to make a job, lots of things that people will pay others to do (that are perfectly legal). If they have family and friends in better locations that is always an option too (though a tougher one).

  15. Looks like Wrecks has his private security force out rounding up Visco’s competitors. Had to expect that.