Windsor’s illegal magic mushroom store, Fun Guyz, is one of more than 30 across the province closing for good.
A spokesperson for Fun Guyz told CBC Windsor the shop on Ouellette Avenue will shutter its doors Monday.
It’s been raided about a half a dozen times by Windsor police, and employees at the store have been charged. In December, Windsor police seized more than $64,000 in products
“They can only take so many hits before you can’t survive,” said the spokesperson, who gave the fake name Brian Johnson when reached at a number the company provided to CBC. “The fight they’re putting up against us is very, very very tough to deal with, so we’re giving up the fight.
“With all the financial hits we’ve taken, we can’t afford to be in business anymore.”
Another spokesperson told CBC FunGuyz’s 30 locations across Canada have been raided more than 120 times.
In Windsor, the shop would often re-open just days after being raided. Three people will be out of a job due to the Ouellette Avenue store’s closure.
Downtown councillor Renaldo Agostino says he’s been against the operation of the shop “from day one.”
“When you own businesses and you operate businesses in the area and all you deal with is an illegal mushroom store next door, it’s a place your customers don’t want to come.”
Chatham-Kent police say they seized more than $20,000 worth of product after executing a search warrant at a storefront on King Street West in Chatham, Ont., in May. (Chatham-Kent Police Service)
Psilocybin, more commonly known as magic mushrooms, has been illegal in Canada since 1975 under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. Health Canada says there is growing interest in the drug’s potential therapeutic uses and clinical trials have shown promising results — but the agency warns there are no approved therapeutic products containing psilocybin in Canada.
The FunGuyz spokesperson said they are trying to push for legalization — and contend that repeated police raids are a waste of taxpayer money.
Outside the location in downtown Windsor, people who spoke with CBC had different opinions of the shop.
“Oh yeah, it’s bad. It’s not good to have it,” said Abdiaziz Ali, who expressed concern about the shop being near kids and families.
Rayed Ahmed works at the nearby Treehouse bar. He says the shop closing is both good and bad.
“Obviously the psilocybin …is still an unregulated drug,” he said, but noted the potential therapeutic uses. He says he thinks psilocybin could be on the same path to legalization as cannabis.
Agostino says he’s not against the drug itself for potential medical purposes — but the storefronts are illegal.
“I give full credit to our police force and all the police forces across the province that have brought us to this point to finally close these places down,” he said.