Bloomberg, California Cannabis Seller Charged With $7.1 Million Tax Evasion:

The California Attorney General’s Office announced Wednesday it filed felony charges against an unlicensed cannabis retailer for evading approximately $7.1 million in state sales tax.

The attorney general’s office said they had arrested Pin Hsien Hsu, who operated unlicensed cannabis dispensaries in Los Angeles, Orange, and San Bernardino Counties from April 2019 to November 2022. He allegedly failed to report approximately $80 million in contraband marijuana sales to the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration, according to the complaint.

“Evading taxes through hazy business tactics is not a victimless crime and it carries serious consequences,” Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a press release from his office.

The complaint, filed in the California Superior Court, Sacramento County, lists over 60 charges and allegations for failure to file sales tax returns, engaging in business without a permit, money laundering, and white collar crime enhancements.

“When individuals and businesses deliberately avoid their legal responsibilities, they are shifting the burden onto honest taxpayers and depriving communities of essential funding,” Bonta said.

The California Department of Justice and the tax department said they conducted a joint investigation and seized about $2.2 million in cash and 125 pounds of contraband marijuana products. The state justice department is prosecuting the case.

“Cannabis businesses that do not pay their fair share deprive important programs of critical funding, including youth substance abuse prevention, environmental restoration, and cannabis research,” the tax department’s director Trista Gonzalez said in the press release. She added that the department is committed to holding cannabis sellers accountable for their tax obligations.

The cannabis retailer wasn’t immediately available for comment.

The case is People v. Pin Hsien Hsu, Cal. Super. Ct., No. 26FE007579, complaint filed 4/21/26.