Pubdate: Thu, 18 Aug 2005
Source: Calgary Herald (CN AB)
Copyright: 2005 Calgary Herald
Contact:  http://www.canada.com/calgary/calgaryherald/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/66
Author: Sherri Zickefoose, and Tarina White
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mdma.htm (Ecstasy)

ECSTASY BUST LARGEST IN ALBERTA'S HISTORY

Drugs Worth $4.2 Million

Police have made the largest ecstasy bust in Alberta history at a
northeast Calgary home, seizing $4.2 million worth of street drugs
that were laced with highly addictive methamphetamine.

A 32-year-old Calgary man is charged in connection with the seizure of
drugs and weapons after police learned the massive shipment was
arriving from Vancouver in June.

Project Intrigue, which began eight months ago and was kept under
wraps until Wednesday, has put a sizable cork in the drug pipeline,
say investigators with Alberta's Integrated Response to Organized Crime
unit.

"This has made a major impact on the Alberta ecstasy market," said
Calgary RCMP Staff Sgt. Barry Balerud.

Besides 213,000 pills, police also recovered two stun guns, a
semi-automatic rifle with a partially loaded clip, body armour, a
high-end SUV, a small amount of marijuana and $25,000 cash from the
raid, which they say is one of the largest ecstasy busts in Canada.

Investigators noted that the "love drug" pills popular with rave-goers
had been combined with another stimulant. Adding methamphetamine is a
common technique targeting young people to keep them coming back,
police drug experts say.

Calgary police drug unit Det. Nina Vaughan said the drugs were
destined for young people, and swallowing the pills without knowing
what's in them is like a game of Russian roulette.

"It's a dangerous game to play. They never really know what they're
taking, and you can't tell from the size of a pill how much you're
taking," she said.

"It's kind of like a garbage can of drugs. There's no quality control."

Organized criminals can expect more police heat in Alberta, says
Solicitor General Harvey Cenaiko, who vows the province is committed
to providing resources to disrupt and dismantle crime rings.

"This shows we're moving in the right direction, this is the tip of
the iceberg. There's numerous other major criminals in this province
that are continuing what this individual did. We're targeting those
individuals as well and we will disrupt (them)."

Hui Xu, 32, also known as Phillip Tu, faces two counts of possession
for the purpose of trafficking, possession of the proceeds of crime,
unlawful possession of a firearm, unsafe storage of a firearm and
three counts of unlawful possession of a prohibited device.

Xu is scheduled to make his next court appearance Sept. 1.

More charges may be laid as the investigation continues, police
say.

In Calgary, the war against drug traffickers is heating up as city
police continue making routine residential drug busts. The latest
happened Tuesday in the southeast community of Dover, where police
found a methamphetamine lab and 185 marijuana plants. Detective
recovered just one gram of meth but seized chemicals used to make
meth, beakers and literature at the house in the 2600 block of 46 Street
S.E.

The pot plants were estimated to be worth approximately $231,000, and
police found trafficking evidence, including scales and packaging.

Scott Watters, 48, is charged with one count of possession of
methamphetamine, one count of possession of marijuana for the purpose
of trafficking, and one count of production of marijuana.

The investigation into the methamphetamine lab is continuing.
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MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin