Police searched roughly three dozen suspects on Thursday at sites in Montreal and Quebec City in an extensive attack that immediately closed four marijuana-distribution stores called “compassion centers”.

The retail shops had been vending pot, explicitly and in considerable amounts, to walk-in customers who said that they required the drug for medicinal purposes.

Police said that around 130 pounds of marijuana were confiscated during a raid that entailed a lot of officers.

Commander Antonio Iannantuoni said that a whole of nine search warrants were carried out.

Four raids were carried out on the retail distribution centers. The rest of the five incursions were on the houses of those managing the businesses.

Iannantuoni said, “There were days when we observed more than 200 people going in and out of the Culture 420 Compassion Centre in Lachine, west of downtown”.

The one-time marijuana shop is within vision of a police station.

Majority of the consumers of the Lachine shop were below 35, Iannantuoni said, quoting reports lodged by his examiners.

He added that around 11 pounds of pot was confiscated in the Lachine shop, and 11 individuals arrested.

A similar onslaught at the same time closed a medical-pot shop in Quebec City. Police said that in total, 35 people were taken into custody.