BRIERE ARRESTED, CHARGED FOR POT

Police have arrested a former Surrey pot grower linked to a controversial
Vancouver store that sells marijuana over the counter.

Vancouver Police Const. Sarah Bloor said officers seized "six pounds of
marijuana and $6,000 in cash" when they stopped Donald Briere's car Sunday
in Vancouver.

Briere was on parole after serving 14 months of a four-year sentence for
running a pot growing and smuggling operation in Surrey.

Bloor confirmed reports that Briere was taken to a hospital following his
arrest when he complained about chest pains. Tuesday, Briere was transferred
from hospital to prison.

Briere's lawyer, John Conroy, said his client's parole has been suspended
and a charge of possession of marijuana for the purpose of trafficking has
been laid.

Briere confirmed his involvement in the "Da Kine Smoke and Beverage Shop"
during an interview with The Leader last Friday, saying the store was set up
by the Canadian Sanctuary Society (a non-profit group he founded that it is
dedicated to helping people legally obtain marijuana for medical purposes).

The store was raided last week by police, four months after it opened for
business on Commercial Drive.

Briere, a Marijuana Party candidate in the Surrey-Tynehead riding in the
last provincial election, was sentenced to four years in jail on Oct. 10,
2001 for running what police called a highly sophisticated marijuana growing
and cross-border pot smuggling operation that generated millions of dollars
in illicit profits.