Pubdate: Sun, 06 Mar 2005
Source: Edmonton Sun (CN AB)
Copyright: 2005, Canoe Limited Partnership.
Contact:  http://www.canoe.com/NewsStand/EdmontonSun/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/135
Author: Dan Palmer
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topics/Rochfort+Bridge (Rochfort Bridge)

GREEN TEAM LEARNING HOW TO COPE

Six RCMP-Edmonton city police Green Team members - four of whom were 
involved in the rural bust that escalated into a mass killing - were on 
days off Friday but worked it instead as a way to cope with the slayings. 
The team of RCMP and city police officers had come and gone from a 
marijuana bust Wednesday on a farm near Rochfort Bridge, 120 km northwest 
of Edmonton, before four Mounties were gunned down there the next day.

"It was hard to know how to deal with it. You had all these different types 
of feelings. It was kind of nice to get together with the guys," said city 
police team member Det. Darren Derko, adding news of the slayings was 
"surreal."

"I know exactly what that word means now. It's hard to explain. I've got no 
words. You just felt sick in your stomach and didn't know what to think or 
what to do."

Derko, with three other Green Team members, went to the Mayerthorpe-area 
farm around midnight Wednesday with a search warrant to check a Quonset 
hut. Inside they found 300 marijuana plants and evidence of a vehicle chop 
shop.

Roughly 4 a.m. Thursday, the Green Team left. Two Mounties were left to 
guard the Quonset hut. Within hours, they were shot dead along with two of 
their comrades.

Derko - who had just met some of the officers that night - and fellow Green 
Team members reflected on the bust during a steak dinner after work Friday.

"You question yourself, 'Did I miss something? Could I have done something 
differently?'

"It was just nice to talk to the guys. I don't know if we could've done 
anything differently," said Derko. "Yeah, the guy has a history with the 
police, but we were aware of that."

RCMP Cpl. Lorne Adamitz, a Green Team member with Derko during the 
Mayerthorpe-area bust, knew on a professional basis constables Peter 
Schiemann, Anthony Gordon and Lionide (Leo) Johnston - three of the four 
dead Mounties.

"We frequently have interaction with detachment personnel," said Adamitz, 
adding the Friday dinner was to bond.

"The way we dealt with it is going out for a team dinner. If something 
happened in your family, you'd probably get together with family members 
and just discuss things."

Derko said it was like a sports team getting together.

"This is the same thing. It's a brotherhood," said Derko.

Before the dinner, all of the six-member team worked to investigate a 
possible theft of power complaint, which is common at marijuana grow 
operations.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom