JURY SHOWN VIDEO OF 'PASTORAL' GROW-OPS

A camera pans a beautiful double rainbow all the way to the end and
the pot that the prosecution alleges would mean gold for six men
charged in what has been called the province's largest marijuana grow-op.

Jurors at a Regina trial continued watching a DVD on Friday that
appears like a how-to instructional video combined with someone's
summer vacation clips. It gives a close-up look at how the plants were
grown and cared for, as well as shots of sunsets, campfires,
dragonflies, and a gopher frolicking in the prairie grass. Then it
suddenly jumps to the money shot -- large greenhouses filled with
bushy, green plants that an RCMP officer has identified as cannabis
marijuana. "Action," someone yells, and two men, identified as two of
the accused, are seen pulling a tarp closed on the greenhouse frame.

The three-hour movie is a compilation of seven video camera discs
seized inside a teepee from which three men fled during a dawn raid on
the site at the Pasqua First Nation. The Aug. 21, 2005 search, which
included the RCMP's emergency response team (ERT), turned up more than
6,000 suspected marijuana plants, most of which were growing in six
homemade greenhouses estimated to be about 60 by seven metres in size.

On trial for drug and weapons charges are Lawrence Hubert Agecoutay,
52, Chester Fernand Girard, 59, Nelson Edward Northwood, 58, Jack
Allan Northwood, 55, Joseph Clayton Agecoutay, 47, and Robert Stanley
Agecoutay, 48.

Ed Rodonets, a former RCMP corporal who has retired since the search,
said it's quite common to find such images at a grow-op because people
want "trophy photos."

While most of the alleged pot is housed inside the greenhouses --
fashioned from wooden planks, poles, ropes, and tarps -- there are
also video images showing the odd plant growing in a flower and
vegetable garden.

The six largest greenhouses are numbered in black marker. Beside No.
1, someone has written "love" circled by a heart. Accompanying No. 2
is the word "moon" and a drawing of a happy-faced crescent moon.
Beside No. 3 are the words "Happy face" along with the matching
symbol. What appears to be dates are also written on some of the planks.

Under questioning by the defence, Rodonets, who has taken part in more
than 50 grow-op busts, was repeatedly asked about the differences
between marijuana and industrial hemp, which resembles pot but is
grown legally for use in such things as clothing, food, and fuel.
Rodonets said the plants at the Pasqua site were much bushier than the
usually taller, thinner hemp, from which seeds and fibres are
harvested. As well, he said most of the plants in the greenhouses were
the non-seed producing females favoured by pot users, unlike the male
plants primarily used for hemp. Some male plants were found in a
separate building, where Rodonets suspected they were being used to
produce seed for the next year.

Rodonets added that hemp has a much lower THC level (the chemical
which produces the high in pot) and the seed sells for 50 cents a
pound compared to marijuana at $1,500 to $3,000 a pound.

Under further cross-examination, Rodonets said he never checked to see
if anyone at the Pasqua site, located near the homes of Joseph and
Robert Agecoutay, had a permit to grow hemp or plants for a medicinal
purpose.

But Rodonets admitted that while most illegal grow-ops are hidden,
this one "was fairly open. It wasn't like it was concealed."

Asked about an apparent pot plant growing in a planter in front of
Robert Agecoutay's house, Rodonets replied, "I was quite shocked to
see that."

The trial continues Monday.