Several smoke shops in Modesto are fronts for the underbelly of vice in the city, police say
Secret rooms, hidden storage areas, illegal gambling and illicit drug sales are the underbelly of some Modesto smoke shops acting as fronts throughout the city, according to officials.
The Modesto Police Department held a press conference on Thursday to present evidence of raids conducted over the past several months. Strewn out on tables next to the podium were hundreds of flavored vapes, cigars, and cigarette papers — which were made illegal by California voters in 2022.
Slides presented to reporters showed that marijuana-infused candies, prepackaged psilocybin mushrooms, meth and guns were confiscated as part of MPD’s raids.
“These smoke shops are a threat. Not only to our children, they create blight in the Modesto neighborhoods and they impact quality of life for the citizens of Modesto,” said Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office spokesperson Wendell Emerson. “This is unacceptable.”
Officials are concerned about the threat that candy-like packaging of vapes and marijuana products pose to the city’s youth. Representatives of Modesto City Schools were in attendance on Thursday.
Chief Brandon Gillespie said their recent enforcement is in response to the California Department of Public Health’s emergency regulation on hemp products, which prohibits food and beverages not sold through licensed marijuana dispensaries from having any detectable amounts of THC.
“Let me be absolutely clear to these bad actor businesses: we are coming after you,” said Gillespie. “We are here today to deliver a straightforward message — we will not tolerate businesses that place profit over the safety and well-being of our children.”
The crackdown
MPD had been raiding smoke shops for months. During their inspections in March and May, the department went to 14 different locations. This resulted in 15 arrests and the discovery of 12 illegal gambling machines, hundreds of pounds of flavored tobacco, cannabis-infused products, mushrooms, a gun and over $10,000 in cash.
Last week, the Modesto City Council voted unanimously on a 45-day moratorium on new, expanding or relocating tobacco shops. The morning after the moratorium was passed, MPD launched a large-scale, week-long operation.
Photos of the operation showed backrooms where illegal gambling dens made thousands of dollars from machines and other games such as craps. Gamblers could press a buzzer when it was time for the business to make a payout. Cash was hidden; one photo showed it in a suitcase.
Illegal products were tucked away in hidden compartments, such as a cut-out bed, and secret rooms with coverings that matched the surrounding walls.
During the operation, MPD went to 43 different businesses, which resulted in 22 arrests. MPD said it “did not inspect a single business that did not have some type of flavored tobacco for sale.”
Many of the businesses had already been inspected but were found to be in violation again.
“Both times we conducted an inspection at a business two days in a row. The first day, we took several hundred pounds of illegal products, and that same day, posted online was a video of them restocking their shelves,” said Cpt. Chris Adams. “We went back the next day, and we took that product as well.”
Police said these activities can account for 60% of the revenue of many smoke shops. But the issue with delving into vice to profit is what comes with it — violence.
Lt. Thomas Moffett said because of the increased cash flow, the shops are more susceptible to robberies which won’t get reported to police.
“As recently as (Wednesday), we conducted an inspection where we located this entire room dedicated to gambling on the second floor of the smoke shop with several machines,” said Moffett. “Something that tends to discredit the legitimacy of these businesses... is these products are actively being concealed from us so that they can continue their legal operations.”
Emerson said anyone arrested will be “prosecuted to the fullest.”
“We want the message to be sent that this activity will not be tolerated in our community,” said Emerson.
The operations by MPD were done in coordination with the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. MPD received a $547,000 grant from the California Department of Justice to conduct large scale inspections, undercover operations and training.
This story was originally published October 18, 2024 at 12:43 PM.
