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POTENT CANADIAN POT IS MOVING INTO N.D.

Porous Border Opens Door For Drug Trade; Quantity Disputed

Drug agents in North Dakota believe potent marijuana grown in high-tech underground laboratories in Manitoba is filtering into the United States through porous international border crossings.

Marijuana growers are building sophisticated below-ground bunkers all over rural Winnipeg, said Sgt.  Lyle MacMillan, a Winnipeg Police drug agent.  Some of the operations are growing hundreds -- maybe thousands - -- of marijuana plants that produce three to four crops a year.

Jerry Kemmet, who heads the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation, said the lightly guarded border between Manitoba and North Dakota provides easy routes for traffickers to move the pot south.

"The border is so open," Kemmet said.  "There are some crossings where all they do is set up ( pylon ) cones at night to stop traffic."

High THC Factor

The Canadian marijuana has a THC level 30 to 40 percent higher than traditional marijuana grown in Mexico and South America, officials said.

THC -- short for tetrahydrocannabinol -- is the chemical produced in the buds of a marijuana plant that produces an intoxicating sensation when smoked or ingested.

"This is some of the best marijuana in the nation," Kemmet said.  "It is tremendously potent."

Kemmet said there is no proof the Canadian pot is coming to North Dakota in large quantities, but he's concerned about the influx of the plant because it's such a potent strain.  Simply stated: It's a better-quality product -- and pot smokers know it, he said.

Exaggerated?

Sgt.  Dave Roach, a drug agent with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Manitoba, said the problem is not as bad as people think.

"The story has gotten way out of hand," he said.  "There is no reason to believe this stuff has been going south in big amounts."

But Roach admitted that a lot of high-grade marijuana is, in fact, being grown in Manitoba.

"They're growing this stuff in James Bond-type bunkers," he said.  "We could fly our planes over an operation and never know they're down there."

Roach said the pot-growing operations around Winnipeg have probably existed for years, but have become more commonplace in the last three years.

Part of the problem, MacMillan said, is the light jail sentences pot growers receive in Manitoba.  He said most growers are charged with "producing marijuana" or "possession of marijuana for the purpose of delivering."

"The penalties are next to nothing," he said.  "If it's their first offense, they usually just get fined."