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The federal government is not doing enough to keep organized crime out of the medical marijuana business, B.C. Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth said Thursday.

Farnworth was reacting to two recent Postmedia News stories about full-patch members of the Hells Angels being involved in medical pot in B.C.

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This week, Postmedia reported that West Point Hells Angel Lukasz Cimoszko, who died recently of a suspected overdose, had a federal licence to grow medical cannabis despite allegations by the B.C. Civil Forfeiture Office that he was involved in organized crime.

And in February, Postmedia revealed that long-time Vancouver Hells Angel Hal Porteous was offering on Instagram to help people obtain medical marijuana growing licences. Porteous has since retired from the biker gang.

“We don’t want to see the involvement of organized crime in either medical cannabis or the recreational cannabis industry. This is clearly evidence that not-thorough-enough background screenings are being done by Health Canada on who is getting these licences,” Farnworth said. “There is absolutely no place for organizations like the Hells Angels in either recreational cannabis or medicinal cannabis.”