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Drug ring busted in Nunavut and Quebec 'A crippling blow has been dealt to this organized drug trafficking ring'
Miranda Scotland
Northern News Services
Published Monday, September 30, 2013
NUNAVUT/MONTREAL
Police have arrested nine people and seized more than 1,000 pot plants as part of an investigation into a drug distribution network involving Nunavut and Quebec.
The operation was conducted by Nunavut RCMP, Aboriginal Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit (A-CFSEU) and the Kativik Regional Police Force (KRPF), beginning in March 2013.
Together, the organizations uncovered a drug network, which started in Montreal where the pot was grown and packaged.
Together Nunavut RCMP, Aboriginal Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit (A-CFSEU) and the Kativik Regional Police Force (KRPF) disrupted a Montreal-based weed distribution network last week, which was supplying communities in Nunavut and Nunavik.
photo courtesy of RCMP V Division |
The drugs were then transported by parcel post to Nunavut and Nunavik and sold by local drug dealers using an electronic money transfer system.
Police conducted several raids last week in Nunavut and Quebec in connection with the investigation.
They seized more than 1,000 pot plants and 22 kg of cannabis in the greater Montreal area.
Three suspects have been arrested in Montreal while another six were arrested in Kimmirut, Resolute Bay and Arctic Bay.
Another four arrests were made in the Nunavik communities of Kangiqsujuaq, Inukjuak and Puvirnituq.
One of the suspects from Montreal, a 52-year-old man, is believed to be the leader of the operation.
"The network dismantled today was established for many years with the Montreal-based suspect acting as the main distributor, reselling the drugs at very high prices in these remote areas," stated a news release from police.
The arrested individuals may be facing charges under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act and there could be further arrests, according to police. Names of those arrested have not yet been released.
The success of the investigation is a win for Northern communities and wouldn't have been possible without the public, said chief-Supt. Lindsay Brine, commanding officer of the RCMP in Nunavut.
"A crippling blow has been dealt to this organized drug trafficking ring," stated Brine in a news release. "This will significantly reduce the supply of illicit drugs in Nunavut Territory. These drugs are harmful, and we continue to ask for the assistance of the public so we can further reduce the flow."
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