POLICE ARREST 47, SHUT DOWN SEVEN CRACK HOUSES IN SWEEP

Seven more crack houses are now out of business, thanks to the
continuing crackdown on street crime in several Ottawa
neighbourhoods.

A sweep by the street crime unit has also resulted in the arrests of
47 people who now face 225 charges.

Of those arrested, police say two were occupants of a notorious
Catherine Street address who are now in custody facing several drug
trafficking charges, possession of proceeds of crime charges and
breach of undertaking charges. Fourteen women were arrested on
prostitution-related charges.

Since it was formed in November, the unit has been targeting
street-level drug dealers and prostitution-related crimes in the
ByWard Market, Vanier, Hintonburg and the downtown core and has
charged 112 people.

Insp. Alain Bernard said the crack house closings and the flurry of
arrests are "a testament to how much of an issue it is out there."

He said the sharing of information between various police units, such
as the drug and guns and gangs units, is the key to stopping
street-level drug dealing and prostitution.

"Oftentimes the same dealers that are inside the crack houses can be
found on the street. That's where the connect happens," he said.

"We take information and share it with other units within the service.
It's from working together that we've managed to close an additional
seven crack houses in the past six weeks."

Working with landlords is the "other piece of the puzzle," he
said.

"Where the problem really stems from is when all of a sudden you have
an absentee landlord, who is doing this for the sole purposes of money
and might not have a vested interest in closing down a crack house
because they're paying the rent," he said.

"They don't see what's happening, or they're indifferent to what's
happening, and because of that, all of a sudden we run into some problems."

But some landlords are working closely with the police, he added,
citing the closing of a crack house in the 300 block of Catherine
Street last weekend as an example.

"A landlord came forward and said, 'help me.' Not only were we able to
charge two individuals working out of that location with trafficking,
the landlord is in the process of having remaining tenants evicted."

Police raid Duhamel grow-op

Police seized 353 marijuana plants after executing a search warrant
yesterday morning at a home in Duhamel, northeast of Gatineau.

Acting on a tip, police executed a search warrant at 2168 Lac Gagnon
Rd. W. at about 8:30 a.m. and arrested a 54-year-old man who arrived
on the property while officers were there.

The man, who allegedly took care of the plants, was to be charged with
production and trafficking of marijuana, according to the Surete du
Quebec.

Police also seized grow equipment and said the electrical system had
been tampered with to steal electricity.

Nobody was living in the house, which police said was used solely for
the production of marijuana.