Operation Ganjapreneur (December 9, 2025) — AG Wilson’s ~$77M Hemp Crackdown

Last verified: May 2026

The December 9, 2025 Action

Attorney General Wilson announced the action at a press conference in Columbia, with SLED Chief Mark Keel and representatives from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations, the FBI, and the Richland and Lexington county sheriffs in attendance. The seizure totals: 6 warehouses; 6 residences; 2 storage units; 1 retail location. 12 defendants charged with 40 narcotics counts. ~30,000 lbs (15 tons) of product. ~$77 million estimated street value. Coverage centered on Richland and Lexington counties (the I-20 / I-26 / I-77 hub around Columbia), but the case relied on roughly 70 retail locations as customer-end documentation across approximately 17 counties.

The Charging Theory

Defendants were charged with trafficking in marijuana, 10–100 lbs, under S.C. Code § 44-53-370(e), which carries a 1-10 year mandatory minimum and a $10,000 fine. The legal theory was straightforward: SLED lab testing of seized product showed delta-9 THC concentrations above the 0.3% federal hemp ceiling, meaning the product was not lawful "hemp" but Schedule I marijuana under SC Code § 44-53-190. Once classified as marijuana, the bulk weight (>10 lbs aggregate) triggered trafficking exposure rather than simple possession or PWID. See trafficking mandatory page.

What Wilson Said

"A stand needed to be made against stores openly selling illegal THC products, many of which are dangerously potent and clearly marketed to attract children and teens." — AG Alan Wilson, December 9, 2025 press conference. Wilson framed the operation as an enforcement action against "well-funded out-of-state operators" rather than a step in cannabis policy. SLED Chief Mark Keel said: "I will not sit idly by while a well-funded cannabis industry invades South Carolina with the hopes of legitimizing and normalizing these dangerous products."

March 27, 2026 — The Second Wave

On March 27, 2026, Wilson announced expanded indictments naming the operators of Dab City Warehouse LLC and Jay’s Head Shop and Wellness Center LLC. The headline number from the SLED lab: of 270 hemp brands tested, 261 came back "hot" — that is, exceeded the 0.3% delta-9 dry-weight threshold. The 96.7% noncompliance rate, if accurate, supports Wilson’s argument that the retail-hemp market in South Carolina is functionally trafficking in marijuana under cover of the federal hemp definition.

Industry Response

The South Carolina Healthy Alternatives Association — the state’s hemp-industry trade group — pushed back: "Nothing in South Carolina’s state statutes bans or regulates the sale of hemp or hemp-derived products. Operation Ganjapreneur is enforcement action against a regulatory ambiguity that the General Assembly has failed to resolve." Industry counsel has raised several technical objections to the SLED testing methodology:

• Sampling protocol — Whether each seized lot was sampled in a manner consistent with USDA-approved testing protocols.
• Total vs. delta-9 calculation — Whether SLED applied a "total THC" calculation (including THCA conversion) or a strict delta-9 calculation. The federal Farm Bill specifies delta-9 only.
• Decarboxylation handling — THCA flower stored at room temperature contains low delta-9 but converts to delta-9 when heated; testing methodology that decarboxylates the sample before measurement will produce higher delta-9 readings than a sample tested in its as-received state.
• Solicitor General Cook’s September 16, 2024 opinion — Industry argues that compliant beverages and edibles fall within the SG’s formal legal opinion of legality, regardless of AG Wilson’s contrary position.

See Wilson-Cook conflict page.

The Defendants and Pending Litigation

The 12 December 2025 defendants and the additional March 2026 corporate defendants face trial in the Fifth Judicial Circuit (Richland County) and the Eleventh Judicial Circuit (Lexington County). Several have moved to dismiss on grounds that (a) the seized product met the federal hemp definition, and (b) absent a state statute clearly prohibiting hemp-derived intoxicants, the prosecution is legislating from the AG’s office. Trial dates have been set in late 2026 and 2027.

The Scale Question

30,000 lbs / $77M is a substantial seizure but represents a sliver of the SC retail-hemp market. The Post and Courier’s 2024 retail survey identified 90+ dedicated hemp-product stores statewide; Operation Ganjapreneur targeted approximately 70 retail locations across 17 counties as the customer end. Smoke shops, gas stations, vape stores, and liquor stores not directly raided continued operation through 2026. The deterrent effect on retailers has been mixed; some Lowcountry and Upstate retailers have reported reducing visible inventory while others have continued business as usual pending the federal November 12, 2026 cliff.

What Operation Ganjapreneur Means for the 2025-26 Session

Politically, Operation Ganjapreneur reframed the 2025-26 hemp-regulation debate. Rep. Weston Newton (R-Bluffton), House Judiciary Chair and sponsor of the H.4758 / H.4759 total-ban hemp bills, was able to cite the operation as evidence that voluntary industry compliance had failed. Sen. Davis’s Compassionate Care Act effort (S.53) became more difficult: Wilson’s framing — "I will not sit idly by while a well-funded cannabis industry invades South Carolina" — encompassed the medical-cannabis push as well as the hemp-intoxicant retail wave. House Family Caucus founder Rep. John McCravy III explicitly tied the two together.

The Federal Hemp Cliff Will Substantially Resolve This

⚠️ Whatever the outcome of the Operation Ganjapreneur prosecutions, PL 119-37 § 781 — effective November 12, 2026 — will cap THC in nationally sold consumer hemp products at 0.4 mg per package, redefine hemp using total THC (including THCA) at 0.3%, and ban synthetic / non-naturally-occurring cannabinoids. Most products in the SC retail-hemp market today — delta-8 carts, 10-mg seltzers, THCA flower — will be federally illegal regardless of any state action. See federal hemp cliff page.