Pubdate: Tue, 24 Mar 2009 Source: Vancouver Sun (CN BC) Copyright: 2009 The Vancouver Sun Contact: http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/letters.html Website: http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/477 Author: Kim Bolan B.C., MEXICO PLAN TO SHARE MORE INFORMATION ON DRUG SMUGGLING The attorney-general and his counterpart from the state of Baja California sign a statement of intent to exchange intelligence on criminal activities By Kim Bolan, Vancouver Sun B.C. and Mexico plan to share more information about multinational organized crime groups smuggling drugs across borders, Attorney-General Wally Oppal said Monday. Oppal and his counterpart from the Mexican state of Baja California - -- Rommel Moreno Manjarrez -- signed a statement of intent as a the first step towards an information-sharing agreement about "criminal activities that transcend international borders." "This is important because it shows we are prepared to collaborate with each other and we are going to do that," Oppal said. "The justice system historically has operated in silos, and we can't do that any more. It is fairly obvious when these people cross international boundaries." He said technological advances like the Internet and cellphones "have given criminals more sophisticated tools." "Strengthening our relationships with other criminal justice systems gives the Crown international exposure to other states' experiences in prosecuting organized and gang crimes," he said. Moreno Manjarrez told reporters his country is "at war" with drug cartels that murdered 9,000 people last year including judges, prosecutors, police officers and lawyers. He said the agreement with B.C. is "a very important step in the new way to confront organized crime that operates beyond traditional boundaries." While B.C. has nowhere near Mexico's rate of gang murders, the province has been plagued by gang violence in recent months, most of it linked to the lucrative drug trade and disputes over turf and product. B.C. gangsters have been using Mexico as a place to vacation and meet. Two members of a notorious B.C. gang -- the United Nations -- were gunned down in Mexico last summer. UN leader Clay Roueche was trying to get into Mexico when he was turned away and arrested in the U.S. on a series of drug-trafficking and money-laundering charges. Oppal said the situation in Mexico "is just horrible." "What was taking place in Colombia 10 years ago is now taking place in Mexico," he said, adding that British Columbians should be concerned about what is taking place in our province. NDP critic Mike Farnworth called Oppal's meeting a "nice photo-op." "The reality is, in B.C. we should be dealing with some of the changes that need to take place right here in the province, like funding for prosecutorial services over the long term as opposed to a budget that has them cut over the next three years," Farnworth said. He said Mexico and Canada should already have been exchanging information about international crime groups. Meanwhile, U.S. law enforcement agencies and the RCMP called a joint news conference in Seattle for today to provide details about a coordinated cross-border investigation dubbed Operation Blade Runner, which led to the interdiction of a smuggling group that was using helicopters to transport B.C. marijuana and cocaine across the Canada-U.S. border. The investigation, involving the RCMP's South East District Drug Section, seized several quantities of drugs along with two helicopters. Seven Canadian men and one American face charges, while a 24-year-old B.C. man caught in the case hanged himself last month in a Spokane jail. Samuel Jackson Lindsay-Brown, of Revelstoke, was facing a charge of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver, after he was caught Feb. 23 unloading about 350 pounds of pot in a remote area of eastern Washington state, near the border. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom