POLICE SURROUND VANCOUVER POT CAFE

VANCOUVER (CP) - Officers in a convoy of about 30 vehicles surrounded a
cafe accused of selling marijuana, securing surrounding alley ways and
erecting barricades to keep back angry crowds.

Six people were detained in the raid, which comes a day after B.C.'s
Solicitor General encouraged police to crack down on the Da Kine Cafe.

Officers have been letting it conduct business as usual despite glaring
media reports that it openly sells marijuana over the counter.

Spokeswoman Sarah Bloor said police have been aware of the cafe, that it
has been on their radar but that it takes time to methodically build a case.

Police were executing a search warrant Thursday night that Bloor said had
been thoroughly investigated.

''If people are blatantly drug trafficking, they can expect a visit. The
Vancouver Police Department has to uphold the law,'' she said.

''We don't respond to political or public opinion. We have not received any
complaints with regard to this particular cafe. When they openly flaunted
their activity, we felt it necessary to act.''

The move outraged hundreds of people in the funky Commercial Drive
neighbourhood who filled the street that was festively dressed to look like
a scene from Brooklyn for a movie shoot.

Filming had to be shut down for the raid.

Many screamed at the officers to go home and defiantly smoked joints as
police manning barricades video taped the crowd.

Bloor said massive police presence was necessary to ensure safety of police
and public.

She said no announcement would be made about charges until today.