SARANAC LAKE – A downtown head shop that was targeted by the state Attorney General’s Office has apparently shut down.

A “For Rent” sign is posted on the door of what used to be The Grateful Toad, and the Broadway storefront has been cleared out.

A message left with a phone number posted on the “For Rent” sign wasn’t immediately returned Friday.

The building, located at 13 Broadway, is owned by New Qing Zheng LLC, according to Franklin County Real Property Tax Services records.

The Grateful Toad opened in 2015 with a merchandise array that included glass smoking pipes, electronic cigarettes, clothing, sex toys and skateboards. In the fall of that year it started selling kratom, a substance made from the leaves of trees that grow in Southeast Asia. It’s been described by some as a dietary supplement and a natural pain reliever, but it is not approved in the U.S. for any medicinal use.

Others believe it’s a dangerous substance. Kratom can have a “psychoactive and opioid-like effect,” depending on the dosage, and some people use it to treat morphine and heroin addiction, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. It’s been outlawed in some countries but is not illegal in the U.S., although it’s on the federal Drug Enforcement Agency’s “Drug and Chemical of Concern” list.

An Enterprise report on concerns about the The Grateful Toad’s sale of kratom sparked an investigation by the Attorney General Eric Schneiderman’s office. As part of an undercover probe, Schneiderman’s went into the store and purchased kratom in e-liquid, capsule and tea powder forms. They found that little or none of the kratom products included the required labeling.

Schneiderman’s office filed a lawsuit against store owner Jason Ashley on Jan. 12 and, on Feb. 1, Franklin County State Supreme Court Judge John Ellis approved a permanent injunction prohibiting the business from selling mislabeled products. It specifically barred The Grateful Toad from selling kratom in any form, and any other products that “stimulate, sedate or cause hallucinations or euphoria when ingested or inhaled.” The AG’s office also levied $12,000 in fines and penalties against Ashley.

The Grateful Toad is one of two head shops that opened in the village last year; the other is State of Mind on Main Street. Last fall, Vermontville resident Ann Morgan and others called on village officials to enact regulations that would bar young people from going into these shops and require them to get a license from the village.

The village discussed the issue in February but ultimately decided not to include any restrictions on head shops in its new land use code.

“We are sensitive (to the issue), but it’s hard to shield our youth to all the vices of the world,” Mayor Clyde Rabideau said at the time.