District regulators and police shut down six businesses for illegally selling cannabis between Dec. 17 and Dec. 26, 2025, including several liquor stores found to be operating outside the city’s licensed cannabis system and a licensed medical dispensary, according to a press release from the Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Administration (ABCA).
WVC Wellness is the fifth licensed medical dispensary to be shutdown in the last year after receiving a license to sell legal cannabis in the District.
ABCA and the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) executed closure orders at five unlicensed retailers—Benning Market & Dollar Plus, Best Price Liquor, Cloud Liquor, Minnesota Avenue Exxon, and Sheriff Market—along with one licensed cannabis retailer, WVC Wellness. Officials said the illegal sales posed an imminent threat to public health and safety.
Three of the businesses targeted—Best Price Liquor, Cloud Liquor, and Sheriff Market—also had their alcohol licenses summarily suspended pending the outcome of administrative hearings. The suspensions highlight the District’s increased scrutiny of liquor stores accused of selling cannabis products without authorization.
According to ABCA, the enforcement actions were carried out under expanded civil authority granted by the Medical Cannabis Conditional License and Unlicensed Establishment Closure Clarification Emergency Amendment Act of 2024. Since the law took effect on July 15, 2024, joint enforcement efforts have resulted in the padlocking of 99 illegal cannabis businesses citywide.
Seizures and arrests were reported at each location. At Best Price Liquor on Central Avenue SE, officers seized cannabis and cannabis edibles and arrested a man from Haymarket, Virginia. Cloud Liquor on H Street NE was found with more than four ounces of cannabis , leading to the arrest of a 29-year-old Hyattsville, Maryland resident. Sheriff Market on Sheriff Road NE was also cited for illegal cannabis sales, with more than three ounces of cannabis seized and a 42-year-old District resident arrested.
Minnesota Avenue Exxon, which operates as a gas station convenience store, was found with cannabis and THC products, and officials deactivated the location’s fuel pumps as part of the closure order. Benning Market & Dollar Plus was cited for possessing a smaller quantity of cannabis but was nonetheless shut down as an unlicensed cannabis retailer.
At WVC Wellness, a licensed cannabis business on Ninth Street NW, authorities seized a significantly larger quantity of cannabis (over 5lbs) and related products, including cannabis, THC concentrates, edibles, vape cartridges, and mushrooms. A 49-year-old Maryland resident was arrested in connection with the seizure.
ABCA said the actions are part of an ongoing effort to curb illegal cannabis sales, particularly at businesses such as liquor stores and convenience retailers that are not authorized to sell cannabis under District law. The affected businesses may challenge the closures and suspensions through administrative hearings, which are pending.
