RCMP not aware of fentanyl in illegal cannabis in Nova Scotia, despite premier's claims
CBC
The Nova Scotia RCMP says it's not aware of any fentanyl-laced cannabis being sold by unauthorized cannabis retailers in the province, after the premier made this claim in a news conference last week.
Houston’s remarks came amid growing tension between the province and Mi’kmaw communities after a directive earlier this month from Attorney General and Justice Minister Scott Armstrong ordered a province-wide crackdown on illegal cannabis.
The directive calls on all police agencies in Nova Scotia to prioritize shutting down every unauthorized cannabis dispensary, regardless of location.
"I’ve talked to people in law enforcement who have told me that in this province that they’ve taken illegal cannabis from unregulated illegal dispensaries and tested it and found that it was laced with traces of fentanyl," Houston said in a news conference last Thursday.
"Sometimes I hear, 'I don’t buy from the government supply because I don’t get the same buzz.' Well, that’s probably why."
Nova Scotia RCMP contradicted that statement.
"Based on the information currently available to us, the Nova Scotia RCMP is not aware of any fentanyl having been detected in cannabis products seized by the RCMP from illegal storefronts in the province," said the RCMP in an email to CBC Indigenous.
In an email to CBC Indigenous, Houston's office said the premier was speaking based on personal conversations and said he received this information from a front line police officer.
"Like we've said, this is an unregulated sector, so we don't have data on many aspects at this time," said the email.
The email included a screen shot of a social media post where a person claimed to have bought edibles at an "illegal Indigenous dispensary" and then tested positive for opiates.
On the day the directive was issued, Armstrong sent a letter to all Mi’kmaw chiefs asking for their co-operation with enforcement efforts, citing 'a proliferation of illegal cannabis dispensaries that are largely concentrated on First Nations reserves across the province.'
In the letter, Armstrong makes clear cannabis stores in the province, including on-reserve, must be run through the Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation.
"I am not aware of an even remotely credible basis for suggesting that use of or trade in cannabis is a Mi’kmaq Aboriginal or treaty right," Armstrong said in the letter.
Tuma Wilson, a lawyer and instructor at Acadia University who is Mi’kmaw from Eskasoni First Nation, said the attorney general's stance is troubling while Mi’kmaw trading rights remain before the courts.
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