Smoke shop in downtown Albion raided, closed for selling unauthorized cannabis products

Provided photos: Law enforcement raided the Albion Mini-Mart at 45 North Main St., another smoke shop in Albion and a Cheektowaga residence on Tuesday and seized cannabis, counterfeit-stamped cigarettes and $5,000 in cash.

Information from Orleans County Major Felony Crime Task Force

ALBION – A Newburgh man has been charged after search warrants were executed on Tuesday at two smoke shops in Albion and a Cheektowaga residence.

The arrest was made on Tuesday after an investigation into the sale and distribution of high-grade cannabis flower, THC edibles, concentrated cannabis and THC vapes without a state cannabis license, the Orleans County Major Felony Crime Task Force said.

The Task Force, the Albion Police Department, the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department, the NYS Office of Cannabis Management and the NYS Department of Taxation and Finance executed search warrants at 45 North Main St, Albion (Albion Mini-Mart); 139 South Main St. in Albion (D-R Smoke Shop); and a Cheektowaga residence. (There were no cannabis products found at D-R Smoke Shop during the search warrant execution.)

The Task Force reported that law enforcement seized over 5 pounds of cannabis flower, 1 pound of cannabis edibles, 30 cannabis vapes, a quantity of concentrated cannabis, several cartons of counterfeit-stamped cigarettes and over $5,000 in cash.

Badr A. Nagi

Badr A. Nagi, 38, of Newburgh has been charged with 1 count of criminal possession of cannabis in the third degree (class A misdemeanor) and 1 count of criminal possession of cannabis in the second degree (class E felony).

Nagi was operating the Albion Mini-Mart at 45 North Main St. in Albion. As a result of the investigation and items seized, the NYS Office of Cannabis Management closed the store for selling and possessing unauthorized cannabis products.

These illicit cannabis products can pose a threat to public health and safety due to not being tested or approved by the NYS Office of Cannabis Management. The NYS Department of Taxation and Finance also suspended the Albion Mini-Mart’s license to sell tobacco products due to the counterfeit NYS tax stamps.

Assisting in the investigation were the Orleans County District Attorney’s Office, the Albion Police Department K9, the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department K9, the Village of Albion codes officer and the Cheektowaga Police Department.

This investigation is ongoing and further charges and arrests are pending, said Joe Sacco, supervising investigator for the Major Felony Crime Task Force.