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Police also moved in on the CannaGreen at 2288 St. Joseph Blvd. in Orléans in the morning and were seen leading a man out in handcuffs. Other officers in black jackets and black balaclavas entered the shop carrying cardboard boxes and satchels.

Later, two more officers arrived with battering rams and pry bars, and could be heard pounding on something metallic inside. The store’s smoked glass windows prevented anyone seeing inside from the sidewalk.

A steady flow of customers arrived throughout the morning to find the store’s front door locked.

Raphael Riche, 22, was one. He stopped by for “a bit of leaf” for recreational use. Riche came to Orléans after he found the police had already shut down his regular shop on Montreal Road.

“I could say it’s for medical use – to help my insomnia, my back – but why bother,” he said. “It’s going to be legal in a few months … I’ll go see one of my buddies. Maybe he can help me out instead.”

Photo by Darren Brown / Postmedia

Another customer, who would not give his name, said he uses marijuana to control his multiple sclerosis symptoms. He’d been told to try the drug by his sister, who uses it to control the pain of her Stage 4 breast cancer. Her doctors had prescribed morphine, but she refused and used marijuana instead.

“Morphine is so addictive,” said the 50-year-old man. “What’s the worst that can happen with marijuana? You wake up surrounded by Mars bars wrappers.”

The man said he used CannaGreen’s edible products, and found the shop clean and professional.