Skip to content
Join our Newsletter

Lawsuit of the week: Investor in Vancouver’s first licensed marijuana shop claims original directors were forced out through ‘intimidation and

Shane Allen, an investor in Vancouver’s first licensed cannabis dispensary, is suing Wealthshop Retail Ltd. and others, claiming loans and investments haven’t been paid back after original directors were allegedly forced out “through the use of intimidation and threats of violence.”
marijuana_shutterstock
Shutterstock

Shane Allen, an investor in Vancouver’s first city-licensed cannabis dispensary, is suing Wealthshop Retail Ltd. and others, claiming loans and investments haven’t been paid back after original directors were allegedly forced out “through the use of intimidation and threats of violence.”

Allen filed a notice of civil claim in BC Supreme Court on May 30, naming 1046296 B.C. Ltd., Harkrishan Singh Sidhu, 1004273 B.C. Ltd., Harcharan Kaur Sidhu and Wealthshop Retail Ltd. as defendants.

Allen claims he invested in and provided financing in Wealthshop in exchange for shares in one of the numbered-company defendants, which was set up to provide a “conduit for investment in Wealthshop.” He claims he provided $30,000 between June 2016 and January 2017 for a 20% stake in 1046296 B.C. Ltd., which held a half-interest in the shares of Wealthshop. The dispensary received a licence to operate from the city in May 2016, the lawsuit says, but experienced cashflow issues shortly after opening. Allen claims he allowed the company to use his credit card to “further remedy Wealthshop’s cash flow problems ... given Wealthshop’s nascent stage of development and the limited cash flow and capital available to the company.”

However, Allen claims he was never issued shares in the numbered company, and demands to have the loans paid back and shares delivered have allegedly been refused by defendant Harkrishan Sidhu.

“In January of 2017, [Harkrishan Sidhu] wrestled control of both Wealthshop and 296 away from its previous director and the original shareholders through the use of intimidation and threats of violence,” the claim states. “To date, despite numerous requests to Mr. Sidhu, the Plaintiff has not received shares in 296, a return of his investment, or complete reimbursement for his loans.”

Allen claims the dispensary’s original shareholders tapped non-party Jesse Rice-Jones in August 2015 to run the business, who later introduced Sidhu “for the purpose of attracting investment and providing funding.”

“Unknown to Mr. Rice-Jones and the original shareholders at that time, Mr. Sidhu was on the verge of bankruptcy and owed debts to individuals with connections to organized crime,” the claim states.

Allen seeks repayment of $6,265 for outstanding loans, a tracing order for funds allegedly misappropriated by Sidhu and damages for breach of contract and unjust enrichment.

The allegations have not been tested or proven in court, and the defendants had not responded to the claim by press time.