It was not long after the marijuana grow operation adjacent to her Temple home was busted in 2009 that Barb Balfour faced a different kind of problem. The bungalow next door was now uninhabitable, facing a slew of mould, algae and chemical residue issues, along with a tampered electrical system. But that didn't stop vagrants from propping open the garage door and using the property as a place to party. When the temperature dropped, they lit fires to keep warm, and Balfour found the charred remains of flyers and small pieces of wood. So worried was she about the threat of a blaze, the woman increased the insurance on her own home. [continues 664 words]
Fire Victims Relieved As Suspect Pleads Guilty In the hour after he first discovered the flames tearing through his home, Russell Hugh McDougall made 25 calls on his cellphone. None of those were to 911. Nor did the 33-year-old alert any of his neighbours as the blaze began to whip down the street, demolishing five homes and severely damaging three others. Instead, McDougall left the scene in the early hours of Dec. 5 -- his Citadel neighbours barely escaping as their homes were torched during a ferocious winter storm that left fire trucks stuck in snow as they desperately tried to reach the scene. [continues 760 words]
Police Say Accused Fled Home Without Calling 911 A 33-year-old man now charged in connection with the massive fire that ripped through a northwest neighbourhood in December discovered the blaze in the basement marijuana grow op he was allegedly operating -- but fled the scene without calling 911 or alerting his neighbours, say investigators. This is according to police who charged the suspect on Wednesday with 16 counts of arson by negligence in what is likely one of the largest fires in Western Canada to be caused by a marijuana grow operation. [continues 417 words]
Many First Take Addictive Tea To Cope With Long Hours Of Tedious Work It's a close cousin to opium--a highly addictive brew made from the dried seeds and husks of the opium poppy that produces a sustained feeling of bliss. It's called doda--a "new trend in opium consumption," according to the RCMP--and it's has police and politicians very worried. Canada's border police have made two massive recent seizures of the exotic drug in southern Alberta. One Alberta politician says he's seeing families in Calgary's South Asian population torn apart by the drug. [continues 391 words]
Street Drug Made From Poppy Seeds An unusual drug concoction made from the seeds of the flower that produces opium is gaining the attention of police and a political leader in an immigrant community who says he's seen families ruined by the addictive brew. The dried and ground poppyseed mixture, called doda, is typically put into a tea, providing an addictive high that breaks the monotony of repetitive work and helps people get through long hours on the job, say those who've seen the effects of the drug. [continues 811 words]
Red Deer Man Has Multiple Provincial Titles A 20-year-old champion boxer from Red Deer is one of the nine men arrested recently during a year-long police investigation into a major drug trafficking network based out of Calgary. Cameron O'Connell has multiple provincial titles and a national championship to his credit, according to a Red Deer boxing website, and was a 2007 world champion in an amateur tournament called Ringside. O'Connell now faces two drug-related charges connected to what police call a highly sophisticated cocaine network that moved drugs across the country. [continues 260 words]
Funding Will Help Continue Quest To Isolate Opium Gene Peter Facchini believes the genes of opium poppies could plant the seeds of a new industry in Canada. The University of Calgary researcher is isolating the genes that give the flower its powerful pain-reliving qualities, and wants to use those genes to produce codeine in yeast. Now, Facchini is getting a substantial boost to his research. He is one of the leaders of a team of researchers across Canada who have received $13.6 million from various sources, including $1.9 million from the province through Genome Alberta. [continues 374 words]
The Alberta Court of Appeal has rejected the bid of a Calgary marijuana activist seeking to have his drug trafficking charges stayed. Grant Krieger was looking for a constitutional exemption Wednesday from his marijuana trafficking conviction, arguing his actions were protected under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Krieger has admitted he sent two packages of marijuana to Manitoba in 2003 and 2004, but has argued he was supplying it to sick people for medical purposes. At Krieger's 2006 trial, it was argued it was too difficult for some ill people to obtain an exemption to use the drug under the Marijuana Medical Access Regulations -- doctors were reluctant to sign-off on the treatment due to insurance concerns. [continues 181 words]
Police have found a marijuana grow operation inside the Chestermere home of a 20-year-old man with suspected Calgary gang affiliations who was shot to death on his doorstep Tuesday night. RCMP don't have any suspects in the murder of Jason Viet Quoc Luong, who was gunned down in front of his West Lakeview Place home. But they do believe it might be gang-related. RCMP Sgt. Patrick Webb said police are taking a look at whether the homicide is connected with a series of gang shootings that have plagued Calgary in recent months. [continues 265 words]
Massive Drug Operations Springing Up Under Noses Of Unsuspecting Residents They're appearing everywhere, from apartments to million-dollar mansions. So lucrative is the marijuana trade that growers aren't discriminating between low income neighbourhoods and upscale suburbs. Experts say grow ops are being found in virtually every neighbourhood in Calgary, with major operations leaving homes in a decaying mess of mould costing tens of thousands of dollars to repair. On May 9, police raided the one of the largest residential marijuana grow operations discovered in the city's history. [continues 1658 words]
When police left their home that day three years ago, they felt like officers had taken a piece of their heart. Anita and Leo Currie had just been told their son was dead. Leo Shaun Currie was found deceased in bed at his Sheet Harbour home on March 6, 2005. A friend discovered the body. The 35-year-old died due to respiratory failure caused by a combination of alcohol and methadone he'd drunk the evening before. The sentiments of his parents, contained in a victim impact statement, were read in Dartmouth provincial court yesterday by Crown attorney Ron MacDonald. [continues 413 words]
It was called Operation Hunger - a police task force that busted a large and sophisticated marijuana grow operation harboured in suburban homes around metro. The grow op involved the purchase of houses that were then modified to cultivate marijuana. Electricity was pilfered to support the production. In 2004, police arrested a number people of Vietnamese origin, charging them with various crimes related to marijuana production. One of those is Tuan Anh Nguyen. Yesterday, he faced sentencing in Halifax provincial court. Called to the stand yesterday was a Vancouver Police Department officer who specializes in Vietnamese organized crime groups in Canada. [continues 368 words]
COLE HARBOUR - Cole Harbour RCMP made an unexpected pot bust early yesterday, after firefighters smashed into a house in Cole Harbour to make sure it hadn't caught fire after car in its driveway appeared to explode. Inside the house, located at 70 Cole Drive, firefighters stumbled on to about 100 marijuana plants, said RCMP Sgt. Ken Coakley. One man was arrested for cultivation of marijuana and drug charges are pending, said Coakley. An investigation into the car fire has also begun. [continues 301 words]
