Kids & Family

Business Owners Refuse to Stop Selling K2/Spice

Some local business owners have said they will continue to sell Spice/K2 on their shelves until the substance is ban from Michigan.

sold to young adults at corner liquor stores, gas stations and smoke shops are making plans to educate the public.

William Miskokoman, the father of a Utica teen who became addicted to K2/spice said he is organizing a rally outside the Citgo Gas Station on 21 and Van Dyke because it has been selling spice to high school students. He has created a Facebook page for residents to learn more about upcoming rallies, legislation and petitions.

Citgo Gas Station owner David Dabish told Patch he had been selling spice to people of all ages, but recently, since spice manufacturers have been printing on the package not to sell to minors, he has been asking for ID and not selling to people under 18.

Find out what's happening in Shelby-Uticawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Dabish opened Woodstock Tobacco just a few hundred feet away from the gas station that also sells a variety of spices. He told Patch he would not stop selling the substance until it's illegal.

The business owner refused to speak on camera with Patch, but he did say that if the local police departments try to stop him from selling spices before it's banned in Michigan, he will fight hard. "I have deep pockets," he told Patch.

Find out what's happening in Shelby-Uticawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Across the street from the Citgo Gas Station, A&B Liquor Store owner Wally Quarana said he had taken spice off his shelves for a while last month because he didn't want to contribute to the misuse of the substance. However, after seeing that other local stores would not do the same, he decided to start selling the products again.

Quarana said customers told him there is a line of high school-aged teenagers purchasing cigarettes and spice from the Citgo across the street early in the morning before school starts.

"I don't want to sell it, but if it's not against the law and the customers will go somewhere else, why would I lose money?" said Quarana.

In Independence Township, after a group of residents visited local businesses, a number of party stores, gas stations and smoke shops have signed a pledge not to sell Spice, K2 and other synthetic drugs, according to the Oakland Press.

No such pledge has been circulated in Shelby Township or Utica.

Shelby Township Police Captain Steven Stanbury said that the local police departments continue to check up on businesses selling Spice, but until they get more "clear-cut guidelines in enforcement, we'll continue to educate the public."

Update: After the story was published, Quarana called Patch and said he planned to remove all K2 and Spice from his store's shelves because he doesn't need the "headache" and he doesn't want to contribute to the sale of the products in the community.


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