Federal prosecutors are seeking to seize more than $850,000 in a civil forfeiture case against a medical-marijuana business connected to a major state-court indictment last year.
According to the forfeiture complaint, which was filed in February but only unsealed on Monday, marijuana grown at a warehouse at 5105 E. 39th Ave. in Denver was illegally distributed to three different medical-marijuana dispensaries. The owners of those dispensaries — Jane Medicals and Higher Health Medical in Denver and All Care Wellness Centers in Lakewood — were indicted last June in state court on allegations they used the stores as fronts for an investment scam and an illegal pot-growing operation.
Despite the indictment, all the dispensaries and the grows connected to the warehouse are listed in state records as “operation pending” — meaning they are allowed to stay open while state regulators decide whether to deny their license applications.
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Federal prosecutors are seeking to seize more than $850,000 in various bank accounts as well as the warehouse itself.
According to the forfeiture complaint, at least one of those indicted in state court has pleaded guilty to charges of filing a false tax return and illegally cultivating marijuana.
“The U.S. Attorneys Office continues to engage in focused enforcement of violations of federal law as it pertains to marijuana,” Colorado U.S. attorney John Walsh said in a statement Monday.
John Ingold: 303-954-1068, jingold@denverpost.com or twitter.com/john_ingold
