HIGH-END RIDES SEIZED BY POLICE

Vehicles Allegedly Used For Drug Trafficking Put Up For Auction

Nicole Tomlinson Vancouver Sun

SURREY - Two souped-up SUVs seized under provincial forfeiture laws
after allegedly being used in a drug trafficking operation were put
on the auction block Friday.

The Hummer H2 and GMC Denali were the first vehicles to be forfeited
under civil laws that allow the B.C. government to seize cash, cars
or even houses when "the relation between unlawful activity and the
items is clear," said John van Dongen, minister of public safety.

The two vehicles put up for auction were well-known to police,
Victoria police Const. Peter Lane said.

"We'd see these vehicles out every night; day and night actually,"
Lane said, glancing at the two vehicles parked in front of a B.C.
Auction branch in Surrey.

"It was clear, in our minds, what was going on."

Since the civil forfeiture laws came into effect two years ago, the
government has acquired more than $4.8 million in cash and assets, he added.

This spring, items used for unlawful activity likely to cause serious
bodily harm, such as drunk driving and street racing, were added to the list.

"If it's illegal, there's a good chance it will end up here," van
Dongen said, referring to the province's asset investment recovery division.

When the items are sold, most of the proceeds will fund operations
for the forfeiture act.

The province also awarded $500,000 of the cash to 27 community
projects in April.

Lane, who gathered the evidence that led to the two SUVs being
seized, said the regulations offer police another option when they
can't prosecute people.

"We can't just pull over someone we think is a drug dealer and search
them; even if we do, often we don't find anything because it's been
swallowed or hidden," he said.

"It's nice to see these vehicles taken away because it does hit them
in the pocketbook."

The two vehicles are worth an estimated $60,000.

As of 3 p.m. on Friday, bidding on the Hummer H2 stood at $20,600.
The going rate for the GMC Denali was $11,600.

The two SUVs will be up for auction online at www.bcauction.ca until Aug. 5.