Pubdate: Thu, 14 Mar 2002
Source: Kitchener-Waterloo Record (CN ON)
Copyright: 2002 Kitchener-Waterloo Record
Contact:  http://www.therecord.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/225
Author: Frances Barrick

POT PLANT WORTH $1,000, TRIAL TOLD

KITCHENER -- The street value of a marijuana plant from an indoor growing 
operation is at least $1,000, a Waterloo regional police officer testified 
at a sentencing hearing yesterday.

But Sgt. Daryl Goetz, a former drug officer, said the person who grew the 
illegal plant will probably only receive about $500 per plant, because the 
value of the drug increases as it goes down the chain of dealers and is 
sold on the street for about $10 a gram. A plant weighs between 100 to 300 
grams, he said.

Goetz was testifying at a sentencing hearing for five men who were 
convicted last December of conspiring in the production and trafficking of 
marijuana.

These charges stem from the first large marijuana drug bust dubbed Project 
Bypass, in which police seized 1,380 marijuana plants worth more than $1 
million during raids at eight houses in Kitchener, Cambridge and Guelph on 
Sept. 12, 2000.

All five men -- Ba N. Dang, Thang Duc Nguyen, Duc H. Nguyen, Duc M. Nguyen 
and Quan H. Nguyen -- pleaded guilty to conspiring in the production of 
marijuana and conspiring in the possession of marijuana for the purpose of 
trafficking.

Goetz also said the force spends between 60 and 120 hours in police time in 
investigating these grows. That includes surveillance, search warrant 
preparation, and the raids which include the removal of plants and growing 
equipment.

He said officers also wear breathing apparatus and protective clothing 
because of health concerns associated with the chemicals used in the 
production, which add to the police cost.

And safety concerns, he said, include electrocution from the illegal hydro 
bypasses, as well as carbon monoxide poisoning from poor ventilation systems.

There is also the risk of fires.

Justice Donald MacMillan has already heard three days of testimony about 
the conspiracy charges as well as the impact these sophisticated grow 
operations have had on the community.

The sentencing hearing is scheduled to continue on May 29.
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