Nine people were arrested on the night of February 1st, 2018 at Mason Inn, a sports bar at 2408 Wisconsin Ave NW, in a raid of a marijuana distribution event. This was the second major pot gifting scheme gone bad in Glover Park in the past few months. Back in November, four people were arrested in a similar scheme across the street above the Tennis Zone shop (see prior Blog article). Cannabis enthusiasts continue to misinterpret DC's "Initiative 71" which allowed for personal home use and "gifting" of marijuana. The DC Metropolitan Police Department continues to crack down on those abusing the law by distributing pot for profit in public places under the guise of "gifting" it along with the purchase of some other nominal legal product, like a t-shirt, or a work of art, or a baked good for an inflated price.
The nine were charged on February 2nd in DC Superior Court with misdemeanor possession with intent to distribute, and all pleaded not guilty. Two of the nine, according to an ABC7/WJLA report, were employed by Montgomery County Maryland public schools as a guidance counselor and a digital arts and technology teacher. One of those arrested has now been arrested four times for possession, and failed to appear at his arraignment last time, resulting in a warrant issued for his arrest. The building owner Thomas Tsianakas, who purchased the building last April has not commented publicly on the raid. See prior blog article on the Mason Inn building sale here.