BUSTED POT CAFE REMAINS DEFIANT

A cafe that had been selling marijuana off its menu for about four
months was doing a booming business before media attention and then a
police raid shut it down briefly, police said Friday.

But even as police were releasing details of the raid the night
before, Da Kine Smoke and Beverage Shop was doing a roaring trade.

"We're not going away," said store spokesman Lorne McLeod. "We've paid
our business taxes, our business licence is still valid so why can't
we operate? They've done the raid, here we are again. If they raid us
again, we'll open again."

Dozens of people filled the store buying grams of pot over the
counter. In the back room, gram bags were filled from football-sized
bags of marijuana. A large box filled with marijuana cookies sat to
one side.

During the raid, officers seized $63,000, another $1,700 US, nine
kilograms of marijuana, some hashish and 300 cookies baked with hash
or marijuana, Acting Deputy Chief Bob Rolls told a news conference.