Deputies shut down illegal Rainbow-area pot dispensary

RAINBOW – Sheriff's personnel raided and shuttered an illegal marijuana shop in the far northern reaches of San Diego County Friday, Feb. 26, seizing hundreds of pounds of cannabis products and arresting three people.

A SWAT team served a warrant at the illicit dispensary in the 3100 block of Rainbow Valley Boulevard in Rainbow about 7 a.m., sheriff's Sgt. Mark Knierim said.

During an ensuing search of the premises, deputies impounded 117 pounds of marijuana; 528 pounds of cannabis-infused products, including edibles and vape materials; about 250 tetrahydrocannabinol-infused drinks; $24,155 in cash; three guns; and a ballistic vest.

Arrested during the operation on suspicion of narcotics crimes were Abdulwahab Ahmed 30, Demetrius Charlot, 28, and Marquest Jackson, 27.

“The warrant (stemmed from) an investigation by the Sheriff's Marijuana Enforcement Team ... and the Fallbrook Sheriff's Substation Crime Suppression Team in connection with two shooting incidents at the location that happened in January and October of last year,'' the sergeant said.

County code-compliance officers who took part in the raid determined that the building housing the dispensary ``posed an extreme hazard to anyone who entered'' due to structural deficiencies and exposed wiring. They asked Southern California Edison to cut off power to the property immediately, Knierim said.

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