Businessman says he knows who used his company name to hand out pot-laced candy
A Vancouver man who sells cannabis edibles online says he has figured out who used his company name to distribute pot-laced candies outside a trade show earlier this month.
Adam Osborne, owner of Earth’s Edibles, said he has spoken to the people behind the candy handout and told them he doesn’t appreciate that they used packaging with his company’s name on it without his knowledge or permission.
The business that Osborne says distributed the candy does not show up on corporate records in Victoria. Postmedia reached out to companies with similar names in Calgary and the U.S. last week. The Calgary company said it was “not linked” to the candy. The U.S. company did not respond.
Vancouver police said they continue to investigate, Sgt. Jason Robillard said last week.
Osborne said he spoke to the VPD and explained that the candies left on vehicles had nothing to do with him or his company.
He said despite his company’s name being on the packaging, the logo was not the one he uses.
“Why would I have somebody else’s logo on there?” he said. “We don’t even have those products.”
He said his company caters to medicinal cannabis users through gourmet meals like butter chicken, Italian sausage pasta and pizzas. The company’s website also displays various strains of cannabis flowers.
“We are trying to create a lifestyle brand. We are probably going to shut down over this,” said Osborne, who is trying to move his headquarters to the U.S. “We don’t want the bad press. We have never targeted kids.”
Osborne admitted he has no licence to sell cannabis and said he likely won’t apply for one in B.C. given that he has a criminal record in the U.S. for conspiracy to distribute MDMA.
In 2009, he was sentenced to two years in jail after reaching a plea deal in Washington state in a drug conspiracy case. U.S. court documents indicate Osborne was originally charged with conspiracy to distribute and export more than five kilograms of cocaine from Washington to Canada.
He pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of using a telephone or BlackBerry to facilitate the distribution of controlled substances.
The agreed statement of facts said that Osborne, while living in California in 2007 and 2008, “met up with people engaged in distributing controlled substances including MDMA and cocaine.
“During this time, while in the western district of Washington, Osborne used his cellular telephone and BlackBerry device to distribute controlled substances, including the importation and distribution of MDMA.”
Osborne said his past has nothing to do with his current business, which he incorporated in B.C. in February 2008 as EE Cuisine Inc.
“I was younger. I made mistakes when I was younger,” he said of his U.S. conviction. “I realize obviously I am not going to be the first contender for somebody to get a licence for anything.”
Richmond-Queensborough Liberal MLA Jas Johal said Osborne’s criminal history is troubling.
“It’s incredibly concerning what Postmedia has uncovered. The fact an individual with a drug conspiracy conviction is running a cannabis edibles company … is a damning indictment of the NDP government and its so called safety-first message,” he said. “There is little to no vigilance under this government.”
Johal said “significant discussion” is needed about how to regulate edibles.