Vancouver's 'Prince of Pot' surrenders for U.S. extradition

VANCOUVER — Canada's "Prince of Pot," Marc Emery, surrendered to authorities Monday and await extradition to the U.S. where he is expected to serve up to five years in prison for shipping marijuana seeds across the border.

Emery, 51 was indicted in 2005 along with two associates on drug and money-laundering charges stemming from a lucrative mail-order pot-seed business run out of Emery's Vancouver book and paraphernalia shop, which also doubled as B.C.'s Marijuana Party headquarters.

Two charges Emery faced — conspiracy to distribute marijuana and conspiracy to engage in money laundering — were dropped in exchange for his guilty plea on the charge of conspiracy to manufacture marijuana.

Canadian authorities drew criticism for helping the U.S. nab Emery because he openly participated in an operation that drew little heat in Canada.

Emery is expected to surrender to authorities before the B.C. Supreme Court, beginning a process that is expected to take him into a U.S. prison to serve time for a crime that would have netted him a fraction of the punishment in Canada.

Emery was convicted in Canada of selling pot seeds in 1998 and given a $2,000 fine.

Emery's two associates, Michelle Rainey, 38, and Gregory Williams, 54, were recently sentenced in the U.S. to two years probation for conspiracy to manufacture marijuana as a result of a plea deal.

Emery, now dubbed the country's first "marijuana martyr," recently wrapped up a 30-city "farewell tour" across Canada.

He is also hoping a transfer agreement allowing Canadians convicted and jailed in the U.S. to serve their time back home will play in his favour.

"The same seeds I sold are being sold right in America . . . There's a terrible hypocrisy at work here," said Emery. "There isn't a single victim in my case, no one who can stand up and say, 'I was hurt by Marc Emery.' No one."

With files from the Vancouver Sun