Lisa Scott
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Nov 16/05) - Two men accused of being major players in a Yellowknife cocaine ring have been denied bail.

Despite arguments by defence lawyer Robert Davidson, Justice John Vertes remanded Larry Mak and Kan Sui Wong into custody after their bail hearing last week.

The two men sat together in the prisoner's box last week as Vertes delivered his decision.

No details of the decision, evidence or arguments can be published due to a publication ban.

Mak, 38 and Wong, 56, have been in police custody since an October 13 drug raid in Yellowknife.

Police raided three businesses and four residences after an 18-month investigation into a crack cocaine drug ring in the city, called Project Gunship.

Wong's bar, the Right Spot, has been closed since the raid. Mak was a manager at the 50th St. business. Wong surrendered his liquor license for the bar the day the NWT Liquor Board was to decide the fate of the business.

The men are two of eleven people charged in connection with the raid.

Mak is charged with one count of trafficking cocaine, one count of possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking and conspiring to traffic cocaine.

Wong faces five joint charges of conspiring to traffic cocaine.

Yellowknife RCMP are expected to lay nine more charges in relation to the investigation. They say the high-level players are all in custody, leaving them to go after the street level dealers involved in the crack cocaine ring.