Yukon RCMP lay organized crime charges against 8 people following 6-month investigation
CBC
RCMP in Whitehorse say they have significantly disrupted drug trafficking in the territory after a six-month investigation led to the arrest of eight people and the seizure of large quantities of illicit drugs including fentanyl.
Supt. Chan Daktari Dara, the criminal operations officer for the Yukon RCMP, said the investigation, dubbed Project Monterey and led by the RCMP's Crime Reduction Unit (CRU), led to the arrest of four people on June 1, and the search of two residences in the city.
During the searches, the RCMP seized two prohibited semi-automatic handguns, both loaded and one with a silencer, and 168.3 grams of a substance police believe is fentanyl, with an estimated street value of $84,000.
"It is one of the largest seizures of fentanyl," said Dara. "This could provide potentially over 1,600 doses."
Police also seized 528 grams of a substance they think is cocaine, with an estimated street value of approximately $66,000, 388 Dilaudid hydromorphone pills with an estimated value of $21,000, and 1,043 benzodiazepine pills with an estimated street value of $7,000.
They also seized $148,000 in cash and assorted drug paraphernalia.
Dara said two days later, on June 3, CRU "arrested an additional four individuals associated to the same investigation." He added they were all already incarcerated.
"As a result of Project Monterey, these eight individuals are facing a total of 29 charges related to drug trafficking, money laundering, proceeds of crime, firearms offences and failing to comply with conditions," said Dara.
He added the eight people arrested also face a charge of participating in the activities of organized crime.
Dara said that as far as he knows, this is the first time anybody in Yukon has been charged under section 467.1 of the Criminal Code.
"[It's] very difficult to prove the elements of the offence," he said. "And the fact that the CRU team were able to gather strong evidence enough for that charge to be laid is a testament to their hard work."
Dara said silencers and semi-automatic handguns are commonly used by organized crime groups in other parts of the country.
"To find one in the Yukon is obviously very alarming," he said.
The investigation also collected evidence that the group of eight people supplied illicit drugs in Old Crow, Mayo, Dawson City and Whitehorse, including the Whitehorse Correctional Centre, according to Dara.
Ontario is running out of time to beef up rules that would crack down on negligent and misbehaving municipal politicians ahead of the next civic election, some experts and opposition critics warn.
Six London teens are each facing multiple charges following a break-and-enter spree at homes in the city's southwest end early Sunday, police said.
The Department of Transportation and Infrastructure is putting the finishing touches on completing the Team Gushue Highway, but it means drivers might have to change their routes until later this summer.
Passage of the Nova Scotia government's budget bill stalled late Tuesday night when a group of singing protesters shut down the final vote to approve the budget.
Health Minister John Dornan said Woodstock-based eVisitNB will continue to provide virtual health-care services to New Brunswickers for another 90 days after March 31.
The head of Canada's largest airline has been summoned to Ottawa to explain why he spoke only in English when he offered his condolences to the families of those killed or hurt in the collision between a plane and a fire truck at a New York City airport on Sunday.
Manitoba is bucking a national trend by promising to slash its deficit, while boosting health care spending by nearly $1 billion and delivering modest affordability measures, including a PST cut that will save you money next time you buy a soda and bag of chips.
Premier Scott Moe has said there are no "cancellations or delays" to school projects as a result of the provincial budget introduced last week.
An 18-year-old man has been charged with second-degree murder in a deadly daytime shooting on a highway south of Edmonton.
More than a month after the deadly mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, stories of bravery during the tragedy are being shared.
Just over six months after the University of Prince Edward Island's medical program began, the dean of the faculty says things are “going wonderfully.”
One person has been found dead after a large fire gutted a home in Mississauga on Monday night, officials say.
The Northwest Territories government says it has found elevated levels of lead in drinking water at the Chief Jimmy Bruneau school in Behchokǫ̀.