ARMED ROBBERS TAKE OVER MEDICAL MARIJUANA CLUB

Assailants Make Off With Almost A Pound Of Cannabis

A central Berkeley medical cannabis club was robbed Wednesday afternoon
after armed assailants held those inside hostage and made off with
marijuana and cash.

The robbery occurred at about 2:40 p.m. after two Latino males, armed with
a gun and a knife, entered Medical Herbs, located on the 1600 block of
University Avenue, Berkeley police Lt. Cynthia Harris said.

Two others were waiting outside in a car during the robbery, Harris said.

No arrests have been made, but the investigation is ongoing, Harris said.

The robbers made off with $1500 in cash and just under a pound of
marijuana, said Dorrit Geshuri, the club's director of special services.

Two patients and five employees were inside Medical Herbs when the two
robbers forced their way past a security guard into the club, Geshuri said.

"It was unfortunate that there were patients there," Geshuri said. "They
have it hard enough as it is."

The assailants forced everybody inside the club on the floor, except for
one wheelchair-bound patient, and then searched the club, Geshuri said. The
ordeal lasted less than 10 minutes, she said.

Geshuri said the two men were denied access to the club after they failed
to present the security guard with a medical marijuana users' card. The
card, issued by the Oakland Cannabis Buyers' Cooperative, ensures that only
legitimate patients are given access to the marijuana, she said.

The two men claimed they came to see the club's owner, prompting the
security guard to fetch the manager, Geshuri said. The manager came
outside, but did not recognize the men and returned to the club; but the
men followed, she said.

When the security guard asked the robbers to wait outside, one of the men
pulled out a gun, Geshuri said.

Police said the assailant armed with a gun is described as a Latino male
between 26 and 30 years old, 5 feet 10 inches tall, weighing 250 pounds,
with a thick mustache. He wore a reddish-brown plaid button- down shirt
during the robbery, Harris said.

The knife-wielding man is described as Latino male between 22 and 23 years
old, with a height of six feet. He was last seen wearing a white T-shirt
and blue jeans, Harris said.

Anybody with information about this robbery can contact the Berkeley
Robbery Detail at 981-5742.