Pubdate: Fri, 23 Dec 2005
Source: Kamloops Daily News (CN BC)
Copyright: 2005 Kamloops Daily News
Contact:  http://www.kamloopsnews.ca/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/679
Author: Jason Hewlett
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mjcn.htm (Cannabis - Canada)

DRUG TRAFFICKERS TURN TO HIGH-END HOMES

Recent police operations reveal drug traffickers are using expensive
residential homes to grow their marijuana crops.

"You wouldn't suspect that a $400,000 home would be used to grow pot.
It doesn't come on people's radar as much as a dilapidated house with
four Rottweilers," Dan Dobrovolny, a real estate salesman with Re/Max
Real Estate, said Wednesday.

"This way few people think drugs are on the property."

Dobrovolny spent eight years working in Vancouver before moving to
Kamloops. From his experience the current trend among growers is to
operate out of expensive homes in residential neighbourhoods.

"We saw this a lot down in the Lower Mainland. I haven't been in
Kamloops long enough to know if that's what's happening here but it
sounds like what the police have come across," he said.

The Kamloops RCMP Action Response Team and members of the drug squad
executed 10 search warrants at homes in the Kamloops area between Nov.
16 and Dec. 15, said Cpl. Fran Bethell.

Officers seized 3,258 marijuana plants in various stages of growth and
a variety of grow equipment including lights, fans and fertilizers. No
weapons were found, she said.

Three of the operations were in Aberdeen. Five more in Barnhartvale,
another in Rayleigh and one in Westwold, said Bethell.

"Eight people were arrested -- seven males and one female. All gave
Lower Mainland addresses as their permanent place of residence," she
said.

"All eight people have been released and are scheduled to appear in
court early next year. They all face charges of cultivation of
marijuana under the Controlled Drug and Substance act."

It's too early to tell if all 10 operations are connected, said
Bethell.

Dobrovolny said it's almost impossible to tell why a buyer is
purchasing a home. If a salesperson suspects someone is up to no good
he or she is obligated to call the police.

"The criminal element is much more discreet. They are professional. We
might suspect something if a person is making a down payment with $100
bills but otherwise it's hard to say," he said.

Bethell said a combination of police work and tips from the public
started the investigation. The addresses have been given to the City
of Kamloops, who used a two-month-old bylaw to disconnect water and
electricity from the homes.

"The City of Kamloops will be following up to ensure that these homes
are inspected and cleaned up before anyone is allowed to live in them.
The bylaw makes this the owner's responsibility," she said.

Coun. Peter Milobar said this protects future tenants from any health
risks caused by the grow-ops.

"It may be unfair to the landlord who ends up with growers in a rental
suite but it's certainly not fair to have people end up with health
problems five years down the road because of a grow-op," he said.

He wasn't surprised to hear that so many homes were targeted by
police, Milobar said.

"I don't think it's a big shock to me or anybody. I'm sure the police
would have liked to take down more," he said.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin