On Thursday, prosecutors said officers recovered nearly 1,000 pounds of marijuana stacked in an apartment above a smoke shop in Bayside, Queens, a haul investigators estimated could fetch roughly $10 million on the street. The discovery triggered a multi-agency probe that officials say is still active.
According to CBS News New York, prosecutors said the bags of pot were found neatly stacked in the unit above the storefront, and pegged the street value at about $10 million.
The find lands in the middle of a citywide campaign to shut down unlicensed smoke shops that ramped up after Albany handed New York City new enforcement powers. The mayor’s office says Operation Padlock to Protect has already shuttered hundreds of unlicensed locations and cleared out large quantities of illegal products across the five boroughs.
Prosecutors Say Stash Was Stowed Right Upstairs
Officials described the stash as being kept in living space above the smoke shop, a concealment tactic investigators have seen in other cases. The Queens District Attorney’s office has documented elaborate hiding methods, including false TVs and fake electrical panels, and DA Melinda Katz warned that "Unregulated cannabis stores sell products that pose a great danger to the surrounding community," as outlined by the Queens District Attorney's office.
Legal Challenges Complicate Padlocking Push
The city's padlocking program has already run into legal pushback in court, including a 2024 decision that allowed a Bayside bodega to reopen. As CBS News New York reported, defense attorneys say such rulings could limit enforcement tools, and CBS did not report whether arrests were made in the latest Bayside seizure.
Investigators say the probe remains active and that more details will be released as charges, if any, are filed. For City Hall and prosecutors, the bust highlights just how big the illicit market remains, even as officials try to shrink it with padlocks, inspections and prosecutions, the mayor’s office noted.
