Cap & Stem closure marks growing focus on unlicensed psychedelic sellers
Authorities shutdown Cap & Stem, a storefront operating exclusively as a mushroom dispensary in Washington, D.C., marking the second such psilocybin-focused shop to be padlocked in the city’s ongoing crackdown on unlicensed entheogenic sellers.
The Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Administration (ABCA), in coordination with the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), executed a Closure Order on July 3 at Cap & Stem’s location at 2601 Sherman Avenue NW. Officials cited the business as posing an “imminent risk to public health and safety” due to its illegal operations.
During the raid, officers seized an alleged:
- 378 grams of raw psychedelic mushrooms
- Over 1,000 grams of mushroom capsules
- 1,500 grams of concentrated psilocybin product
- More than 45 grams of mushroom edibles
- 19 grams of THC edibles
- More than $19,000 in cash
Carlos Cifuentes, 25, of Woodbridge, Virginia, was arrested at the scene and charged with distribution of a controlled substance.
This enforcement action follows the closure of Wellshroomness in May, a shop known for exclusively selling psilocybin products. That operation was also shuttered for similar violations, including the possession of nearly six pounds of mushrooms and hundreds of grams of mushroom edibles.
Both closures reflect a broader trend as city officials ramp up enforcement under the Medical Cannabis Conditional License and Unlicensed Establishment Closure Clarification Emergency Amendment Act of 2024, which took effect last July. Since then, almost 60 illegal shops have been shut down, many for distributing unregulated cannabis and psychedelics.
Though psychedelics were decriminalized in D.C. under Initiative 81, the sale and distribution of psilocybin mushrooms remains illegal under both local and federal law. Cap & Stem’s Instagram says it is temporarily closed.
City officials are urging residents to report illegal activity via anonymous complaints at abca.dc.gov and to verify licensed cannabis retailers through the agency’s official website.
