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Georgetown smoke shop owner, employee arrested, charged with illegally selling cannabis products

Police say they seized hundreds of THC marijuana vape cartridges and several cases of flavored tobacco.

Police seized THC marijuana vape cartridges and flavored tobacco products from a Georgetown store on Tuesday as part of an ongoing investigation. Georgetown Police Department

By Lindsay Shachnow

July 17, 2024

1 minute to read

After a search of the Georgetown Smoke and Vape shop on Tuesday, police arrested the store’s owner and an employee for allegedly selling THC vape cartridges without a license.

The department was previously notified that the store, located at 7 W. Main St., was selling illegal products and launched an investigation, Georgetown Police Department said in a statement. An undercover agent purchased eight THC vape cartridges, and a youth bought two packs of flavored nicotine products, police say.

Working in collaboration with the Massachusetts Department of Revenue and a local tobacco policy group, officers seized hundreds of THC marijuana vape cartridges and several cases of flavored tobacco products, police say.

The store’s owner, Ram Gupta, 30, and an employee, Dinesh Kumar Yadav, 29, were taken into custody on arrest warrants. They were both charged with distribution of a class C substance, possession with intent to distribute a class C substance, delivering cigarettes to a minor, sale of flavored tobacco, and conspiracy to violate drug laws, according to authorities.

Gupta and Yadav were released on $5,000 cash bail and will be arraigned on Wednesday in Haverhill District Court, the statement said.

“On behalf of the Georgetown Police Department, I want to express gratitude to the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, the North Shore/Cape Ann Tobacco Policy Program and the Georgetown Board of Health for their assistance with this investigation,” Georgetown Police Chief David Sedgwick said in the statement. “I also want to commend the officers who led this investigation to a successful conclusion.”