Connecticut Sues 7 Companies for Illicit Cannabis Sales

Attorney General William Tong today filed seven new enforcement actions against wholesalers and retailers engaging in the distribution and sale of potent, illicit cannabis products in Connecticut.

Wholesalers include Shark Wholesale Corp. in Bridgeport, Star Enterprise 74, LLC, in New Britain, and RZ Smoke, Inc., in Suffield. The four retailers are Greenleaf Farms in New London, Smoker’s Corner in Norwich, Anesthesia Convenience & Smoke in New Haven, and Planet Zaza in East Haven.

In each instance, the Office of the Attorney General is alleging violations of the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act, which carries fines of up to $5,000 per violation, according to press release.

“Cannabis is legal for adults in Connecticut, but it’s not a free-for-all—retailers must be licensed and legal cannabis products must comply with strict safety standards. Today, we are suing seven businesses—three wholesalers and four retailers– who have sold potent, high-THC cannabis products in violation of Connecticut laws,” said Tong. “None of these products have been subject to Connecticut’s rigorous testing standards or contain appropriate warnings.

“Some are sold in dangerous and misleading packaging designed to appeal to children. These products are designed to deceive consumers into believing they are safe, tested, and regulated—that is false. We have multiple active investigations into additional retailers and wholesalers, and we will keep the heat on so long as these dangerous, illegal products are sold.”

Residents over age 21 can legally possess and consume cannabis in Connecticut. Cannabis products may only be sold in the regulated market and must meet rigorous testing and packaging requirements. Cannabis products sold outside of the regulated market continue to be illegal and may subject sellers to civil and criminal penalties.

Despite that, the sale of illegal delta-8 and delta-9 cannabis products and other high-THC cannabis products continues in Connecticut, according to Tong.

In unannounced visits to vape shops and gas stations, investigators from the Office of the Attorney General and the Department of Consumer Protection continue to routinely find illegal cannabis products for sale, including blunts, marijuana flower, and edibles mimicking popular youth-oriented snack foods, including Fritos, Skittles, Airheads, and more.

Illegal look-alike cannabis products pose a unique health threat to children, who may unknowingly ingest high doses of potent psychoactive chemicals. In the regulated adult-use market, edible cannabis products may only be sold in containers that contain a maximum of 100 milligrams of total THC and 5 milligrams of total THC per serving size. Children who accidentally eat an entire snack-sized bag of “chips” or “candy” may be exposed to more than 100 times the maximum adult serving.

Since 2021, the Connecticut Poison Control Center has received 400 calls regarding cannabis exposure in children, including 181 children under the age of 6 exposed to cannabis edibles. The majority of those cases required treatment at a health care facility.

Greenleaf Farms New London



Greenleaf Farms is a CBD retailer in New London with no license to sell cannabis products in Connecticut. Despite that, investigators from both the Department of Consumer Protection and Office of the Attorney General on multiple visits discovered numerous illegal high-THC products for sale, including potent edibles designed to look like children’s cereal. Greenleaf Farms also offered for sale marijuana “blunts,” which were offered in various THC concentrations.

The products lacked a variety of required warning statements and labels, and do not appear to be produced by licensed facilities or tested in accordance with state law.

Further, Greenleaf Farms represented itself as a licensed dispensary in the sign shared below despite lacking such a license.



Smoker’s Corner

Smoker’s Corner is a smoke shop in Norwich with no license to sell cannabis products in Connecticut. During multiple visits, an investigator from the Office of the Attorney General observed illegal high-THC edibles for sale. Further, after the investigator asked if there was any “pot” available for purchase, a Smoker’s Corner employee retrieved a mason jar full of marijuana flower from a back room. The employee then weighed the marijuana on a scale, bagged it, and sold it to the Office of the Attorney General’s investigator. The cannabis products lacked required warnings and labels, did not appear to be produced by licensed facilities or tested in accordance with state law, according to Tong.

Anesthesia Convenience & Smoke

Anesthesia Convenience & Smoke is a smoke shop in New Haven that is not licensed to sell cannabis in Connecticut. On multiple unannounced visits, investigators from the Department of Consumer Protection and Office of the Attorney General observed thousands of high-THC products, including those more potent than any product available in the regulated cannabis market. Products included potent edibles, as well as marijuana flower. The cannabis products lacked required warnings and labels, did not appear to be produced by licensed facilities or tested in accordance with state law, according to Tong.

Planet Zaza

Planet Zaza is a smoke shop located in East Haven with no license to sell cannabis in Connecticut. Investigators with the Department of Consumer Protection and Office of the Attorney General inspected the store on multiple dates, finding numerous high-THC cannabis edibles for sale more potent than any authorized for sale in Connecticut.

Further, investigators discovered unauthorized labels, including fake prescription labels falsely indicating that the store is a licensed dispensary and that the illegal products were medical-use cannabis. The products did not appear to be produced in a licensed facility or tested in accordance with state law, according to Tong.




Wholesalers: RZ Smoke, Star Enterprise, and Shark Wholesale

Star Enterprise is a New Britain-based smoke and vape wholesale business. Shark Wholesale is based in Bridgeport. RZ Smoke is a New York-based smoke and vape wholesale business with a warehouse in Suffield. These wholesalers each supply illicit cannabis products to retailers throughout Connecticut. All three provide products packaged in a manner that deceives consumers into reasonably believing they are purchasing cannabis products from Connecticut’s legal, regulated market. In fact, each wholesaler offered highly potent products far in excess of allowable serving sizes and THC levels.

Star’s products contained THC levels 35-times the maximum permissible in Connecticut’s regulated cannabis market, as well as serving sizes at least five times the maximum allowed. Further, the packages were labeled in such a way as to appeal to youth, including brand names and packaging identical or similar to non-cannabis snacks. Shark’s products contained THC levels 15-times the maximum limit, and serving sizes six times the maximum legal serving size. RZ Smoke’s products contained THC levels 10-times the maximum allowed, with serving sizes five times over the legal limit. Their products were also designed to mimic existing names and packaging of non-cannabis snacks, according to Tong.

Ongoing Cannabis Enforcement Actions

“Today’s filings follow a series of enforcement and educational actions taken by Attorney General Tong to combat the sale of illegal cannabis in Connecticut, including high-THC delta-8 and delta-9 edibles. Last year, Attorney General Tong sent warning letters to all Connecticut licensed retailers of electronic vaping products advising them that sale of delta-8 THC by unlicensed retailers may be illegal,” the release states.

The Office of the Attorney General now has 10 pending enforcement actions, and has secured judgments against four additional Connecticut retailers totaling $40,000 for alleged violations of the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act over the sale of illegal delta-8 THC products.

A portion of the payments will be suspended if the retailers comply with terms of the judgment, including ceasing all sales of illegal cannabis. Additional investigations are active and ongoing. Last week, Tong issued a cease and desist letter to HighBazaar organizers that its unlicensed cannabis marketplace appears to violate multiple state statutes. An additional letter was sent to the Masonic Temple Day Spring Lodge in Hamden, which currently hosts the market, according to Tong.