A hemp and CBD oil business run by a Finnish entrepreneur is being investigated by Finnish Customs authorities for aggravated drug offences.
Now entrepreneur Tuomas Ahonen told Yle that he is the main suspect in the ongoing investigation.
Ahonen has operated two companies selling hemp-based products, with one firm focusing on the sale of industrial hemp flowers, while the other sold CBD (cannabidiol) oil and powder made from hemp. The sales were carried out online, with Ahonen importing the hemp from abroad and selling it to customers in Finland
Industrial hemp refers to legal, non-intoxicating varieties of hemp grown for the production of mainly seeds and fibre, while CBD oil contains cannabidiol, which has no intoxicating effect, but does have relaxing and medicinal properties.
According to Southwestern Finland District Court, Ahonen was detained for two weeks in May, under suspicion of an aggravated drug offense. Yle has not been able to independently verify that the investigation is directly related to sales by Ahonen's online shop.
Ahonen tells Yle that he is suspected, among other things, of importing illegal drugs.
He says that Customs told him that hemp products containíng even the smallest amount of THC (the psychoactive component of cannabis) are considered to be illegal drugs.
Customs has conducted several preliminary investigations in connection with sales of cannabis, according to Customs' director of enforcement, Hannu Sinkkonen.
Sinkkonen would not comment on how many preliminary investigations are underway or how many people are suspected of violations. He did confirm that seizures have been made in connection with the investigations.
Sinkkonen added that suspects are being held in connection with the cases.
Ahonen is by no means the only CBD retailer in Finland. For example, the health food store Ruohonjuuri and the department store chain Kärkkäinen sell CBD oil, but their operations have not aroused a response from the authorities, at least for the time being.
A legal grey zone
The status of industrial hemp has been a matter of debate within the European Union in recent years as the popularity of CBD oils and other hemp products has grown.
Edible CBD oils are currently classified by the EU as "novel foods" that require a special food permit for sale. So far, the EU has not issued any permits for CBD oils, but several applications are pending.
For that reason, merchants are selling CBD oils as skin care products. In practice, they can also be eaten.
Industrial hemp containing up to 0.2 percent tetrahydrocannabinol, THC, the intoxicating ingredient in cannabis, can be legally grown in the EU. The upper permitted limit is being raised to 0.3 percent.
In most EU countries, dried industrial hemp flowers can be found on sale, but their legal status is in a grey zone.
In Belgium, for example, the product is classified as a tobacco substitute. Industrial hemp flowers have been sold for years in Finland's neighboring countries of Estonia and Sweden.
According to Ahonen, the flowers he sold were mainly from large legal suppliers in Spain and Austria.
"These products did not come from shady sources. We have all the necessary documentation from local authorities and other information we need to have about production," Ahonen says.
Ahonen says he is not sure why Finnish Customs suspect him of criminal activity. He says the agency and police seized hemp products from him and his former business partner for inspection over the past year, but in the past had always returned the goods.
"We've been confident that it cannot be terribly illegal to do this," Ahonen says.
Situation for customers unclear
Ahonen says that in just under one year, a few thousand customers had managed to order hemp flowers from his companies. A small number of them placed repeat orders.
Customs has confiscated his phone and computer, which contained a mailing list of his customers, according to Ahonen,
Customs officials would not comment on whether a register of online store customers is being kept, or whether customers may be held criminally liable for purchases. More information will be made available once the preliminary investigation ends, Sinkkonen says
Meanwhile, Ahonen insists that he intends to set a precedent in any upcoming lawsuit on his hemp sales.
"First, I'll go through the Finnish courts. If need be, after that, we will continue on to the EU courts."