A recent robbery at gunpoint outside a local pub is a sign of the growing drug culture in the Comox Valley, RCMP Staff Sgt. Derald Lewis says. Two women were standing outside the pub on Mansfield Dr. at about 9:30 p.m. Saturday when two men accosted them, according to the RCMP. One of the men produced a hand gun and ordered one of the women to hand over her purse. The men then fled toward Cliffe Ave. Mounties tracked the men with a police dog, but they escaped. [continues 89 words]
Comox Valley Crime Stoppers are offering a reward up to $2,000 for information leading to discovery and dismantlement of a methamphetamine laboratory in the Valley. Police haven't yet discovered a local meth lab, but are dealing with a growing number of incidents involving crystal meth. Anyone who suspects a lab may be operating in the Valley is asked to phone Crime Stoppers at 338-8477. Callers can give information and claim rewards without revealing their names and calls to Crime Stoppers are not recorded. [continues 295 words]
Former Marijuana Party candidate Noreen Evers hopes to overturn marijuana laws during a court appearance on Thursday. Evers ran for the Marijuana Party in the North Island in the 2001 provincial election and collected 4.5 per cent of the vote. She is scheduled to appear in provincial court on Thursday to face charges of producing marijuana for purposes of trafficking. She was arrested in Black Creek on May 14, 2004. She says she plans to ask the court to quash the charge, claiming that the marijuana prohibition in the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act has been ruled unconstitutional by various courtsand is therefore null and void. [continues 215 words]
Former Marijuana Party candidate Noreen Evers hopes to overturn marijuana laws during a court appearance on Thursday. Evers ran for the Marijuana Party in the North Island in the 2001 provincial election and collected 4.5 per cent of the vote. She is scheduled to appear in Courtenay provincial court to face charges of producing marijuana for the purpose of trafficking. She was arrested in Black Creek on May 14, 2004. She plans to ask the court to quash the charge, claiming that the marijuana prohibition in the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act has been ruled unconstitutional by various courtsand is therefore null and void. [continues 166 words]
A "grow show" house recently raided by the RCMP will be closed to occupancy until it passes city inspections, Courtenay staff announced this week. Police raided the house on March 3, confiscated more than 500 marijuana plants and arrested two men, RCMP Const. Dean Maxwell said. The same house was shut down in August, 2003 after a police raid yielded a similar quantity of marijuana. The property belonged to the same owners when both searches were executed, according to the city. [continues 192 words]
Crystal meth (methamphetamine) is a growing problem among local drug users, RCMP Const. Dean Maxwell says. Mounties were called to two incidents during the past week which involved meth users, and both were armed with knives, Maxwell said. The first incident occurred at a local gas station, where police answered a report of a disturbance. Mounties attended and found a man with a knife who admitted he was on crystal meth and had a severe drug problem. The man was armed with a five-inch knife and said he wanted to cause harm to himself, Maxwell said. [continues 192 words]
Dogs guarding an alleged grow operation tangled with a police dog when police raided the rural Fanny Bay property Sunday afternoon. Police spotted signs of an illegal, outdoor "grow show" during a routine patrol and descended in the police helicopter to chop the marijuana plants down at about 2 p.m., Sunday. The Mounties spotted two people fleeing in an all-terrain vehicle, and the helicopter brought a police dog and handler to pursue them, according to RCMP Const. Dean Maxwell. [continues 145 words]
A new provincial strategy to curb use of crystal meth will be a boon to law enforcement, RCMP Const. Dean Maxwell says. Use of methamphetamines is increasing in B.C., and is a growing concern to police in the Valley, Maxwell said. The multi-agency strategy announced on Aug. 3 by Minister of Health Services Susan Brice will involve six provincial health authorities, police and the criminal justice system. "We have heard the growing concerns of parents, teachers and frontline workers about the harmful impacts of crystal meth on the people who use it," Brice said, promising to focus all available resources to discourage use of methamphetamines and treat people who are already addicted. [continues 85 words]
Hikers, bikers, forestry workers and other outdoor types can do their part to keep illegal drugs off the streets by reporting marijuana plantations they may spot in the wild, police said. Rural grow operations are often booby-trapped, so people who find them should keep some distance away. Anyone who finds marijuana plants growing outdoors should not attempt to remove them, but should note the location and estimate the number of plants and average height. It is important to record the location by GPS co-ordinates, compass bearing or nearby landmarks and note any vehicles parked in the area and record licence numbers. As soon as possible, phone the nearest RCMP detachment or phone Crime Stoppers' toll-free number, 1-800-222-8477. (1-800-222-TIPS.) [end]
One-hundred-eight grams of ecstasy seized during May confirms suspicions that use of the drug is on the rise in the Valley, RCMP Cpl. Andrew Irvine stated in a recent report to Cumberland council. The seizure, valued at $2,100, includes 99 grams seized from a single individual, Irvine said. Incidents involving ecstasy, known to pharmacists as Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), seem to occur in waves, RCMP Const. Dean Maxwell said recently after unrelated incidents in May caused two teenage girls to be taken to St. Joseph's Hospital after suffering serious reactions to ecstasy and alcohol. [continues 116 words]
Overdoses of ecstasy and alcohol sent two local teen-age girls to hospital recently as use of the drug becomes more prevalent among young people, RCMP Const. Dean Maxwell says. The most recent casualty was an 18-year-old girl, who was taken to St. Joseph's Hospital at about midnight on May 17. She had overdosed on ecstasy and drank a quantity of alcohol. During an unrelated incident earlier in May, a teen-age girl was taken to hospital suffering serious reactions to an overdose of ecstasy. [continues 205 words]
Nine people were found guilty on Tuesday of involvement in the biggest hashish bust in B.C. history. The nine were captured after mounties stormed a fish boat docked at Fanny Bay with nearly 10 tonnes of hashish aboard, and captured an additional 2.3 tonnes from a ship at sea. Seven men were hauling bags of drugs from the fish boat Ansare II to a waiting truck when police surprised them at 2:10 a.m., Nov. 4, 1998, RCMP Sgt. Duncan Gray said at the time. [continues 374 words]
Property sellers could face serious consequences in court if they fail to inform buyers that their buildings housed marijuana grow shows or illegal drug labs, police warn. The B.C. Real Estate Association recently added two questions to its strata title and residential disclosure forms signed by sellers. The question asks: "Are you aware if the (property) has ever been used as a marijuana grow operation or to manufacture illegal drugs?" The disclosure statements are provincial documents designed to help buyers make informed choices about whether to buy property. They also give buyers a starting point for making further inquiries, the Real Estate Association says. [continues 76 words]
A small quantity of "crystal meth" recently seized by police is likely the first trickle of a flood of illegal methamphetamines expected to reach the Valley in the near future, RCMP Const. Dean Maxwell says. Mounties found cocaine and a small quantity of methamphetamines in the man's possession when they arrested him on March 1, Maxwell said. Methamphetamines are already being mass-produced by illegal laboratories in Washington State, and will likely replace cocaine and heroin as prime "drugs of choice" on Vancouver Island and elsewhere in B.C., Maxwell said. [continues 187 words]
Property sellers could face serious consequences in court if they fail to inform buyers that their buildings housed marijuana grow shows or illegal drug labs, police warn. The B.C. Real Estate Association recently added two questions to its strata title and residential disclosure forms signed by sellers. The question asks: "Are you aware if the (property) has ever been used as a marijuana grow operation or to manufacture illegal drugs?" The disclosure statements are provincial documents designed to help buyers make informed choices about whether to buy property. [continues 92 words]
Mounties are gearing up for an influx of organized crime into the local drug scene, Const. Dean Maxwell says. "We feel it's only a matter of time before we get an inundation of crystal methamphetamine and when it happens, there will be chaos because of the destructive nature of the drug," Maxwell said. Maxwell said the public will probably not notice an increase in violent crime as a direct result of the influx, but theft, prostitution and other problems will probably increase sharply, but the general public will still find the Valley a safe place to live. [continues 320 words]
Comox Valley Crime Stoppers has taken a $12 million bite out of crime since it was founded in 1992, RCMP Const. Dean Maxwell says. That's the total value of drugs confiscated and stolen property recovered by police as a result of Crime Stoppers' efforts. During the past year, mounties have seized more than 13,000 marijuana plants from illegal grow operations in the Valley, many of which were shut down thanks to Crime Stoppers, Maxwell said, "Crime Stoppers has always tried to come up with innovative ways of reducing crime and making the community safer," Maxwell said. [continues 108 words]
Comox property owners who rent to people in the illegal drug trade could have their houses shut down and face hefty fees to reopen them, according to a new town bylaw. The bylaw is aimed mainly at producers, but also prohibits the use of property "for the ingestion, use, sharing, sale, trade or barter of a controlled substance." If the occupancy permit on a house is lifted because of drug activity, the town will require the owner to pay costs of the RCMP dealing with occupants and removal of drugs and production equipment stored in the house, according to the bylaw. [continues 89 words]
Courtenay will likely issue hefty fines and cleanup costs to owners of five houses which were recently closed to occupancy after police found massive "grow shows" inside. According to city records, five "grow houses" in Courtenay involved in recent raids are registered to the following owners: * Trung Oan, Phuong Oan and Anh Tu own the property at 1540 10th St. East. * Sinh Chung and Voung Phuong own the property at 910 21st St. * Phuc Hoang and Annie Hoang own the property at 1965 Fitzgerald Ave. [continues 192 words]
"Date rape" drugs appear to have found their way to the Comox Valley, RCMP Const. Dean Max-well says. "Police have received a couple of complaints in recent weeks from young females who report ... symptoms similar to symptoms found in people whose drinks have been surreptitiously spiked with an unknown drug. Some of these can be classified as 'date rape' drugs," Maxwell said. Police say victims typically report they were at a party or drinking establishment, and "the next thing I know, it's morning and I'm in someone's bed. I've no idea what happened in between." [continues 381 words]
