CANNABIS BOOSTERS DISPUTE INFO ON WARRANT

After losing $15,000 in goods and a $4,000 computer in a police raid, Sister
Icee's Hemp B.C. and the Cannabis Cafe want to pinpoint who's responsible.

They also want an apology and $20,000 compensation.

The search warrant for the raid last Thursday by Vancouver police, in which
the goods were confiscated, named "Marc Emery and person or persons unknown"
as the business owner.

But well-known marijuana magnate Emery, whose cannabis capers have been
featured in Rolling Stone magazine and on television's Hard Copy, no longer
owns the two West Hastings Street operations.

Represented by Jonathan Baker and Associates, Hemp B.C. and the Cannabis
Cafe, its next-door neighbor, have sent a letter to the city of Vancouver
requesting an "ample and unqualified apology" -- and $20,000.

"I'm outraged," said Hemp B.C. owner and store manager Shelley Frances, who
picked up the Rastafarian name Sister Icee while living in the Caribbean.

"I totally intend to take it all the way" legally, added Frances. "It's time."

Cannabis Cafe owner Adam Patterson, 23, said he had art work taken and a
door to a dry-goods storage closet was broken.

Failing a satisfactory response within five days from their May 1 complaint,
Baker's firm plans on filing a writ.

"If they don't apologize, then they risk greatly increased punitive damages
when a lawsuit proceeds," Baker, a former Vancouver city councillor, said
yesterday.

"It's entirely possible that if this thing proceeds, it won't be $20,000
they'll be suing for, it will be a lot more than that," he added.

Baker said his firm has detailed the transferral of the businesses from
Emery to new owners on March 8, and he said the city was notified, also in
March.

He said the city was also notified on April 20 of Emery assigning his
leasehold interest in the premises.

Police say that's not the information they received.

"We checked with city hall to ensure our warrants were accurate and the
records at city hall still show Mr. Emery as being the owner at both
locations," said Const. Anne Drennan.

Drennan, said that in excess of $150,000 in goods and a small quantity of
marijuana were taken in Thursday's raid on Hemp B.C., the Cannabis Cafe and
a nearby warehouse.

Neither the Hemp B.C. store or cafe has received a business licence,
although both said they have submitted the necessary documentation.