SALTSPRING COCAINE BUST 'APPALLING'

Two islanders charged after weekend raid that left one Mountie with a
broken leg

Sandra Mcculloch, Times Colonist Published: Wednesday, August 09,
2006 You might smoke marijuana there and not raise an eyebrow, but
Saltspring Island folks get downright cranky when it comes to people
dealing cocaine.

The island's rumour mill is buzzing with word that two born-and-bred
island men were arrested on the weekend and charged with cocaine
trafficking. One of them is also accused of beating up a police
officer and breaking one of his legs.

"People are really pretty appalled," said Const. Lindsay Ellis of
Saltspring Island RCMP on Tuesday. "This is the most serious thing
that's happened to the police here. We've had people who are mentally
ill but this was a pretty targeted and brutal attack. For one of our
members to get hospitalized, that's a big thing."

People on Saltspring really don't like hard drugs and take a dim view
of users and dealers, said Ellis.

Rob Grant, who heads the Community Services Society, agrees.

"As a small community, the criminal element stands out. Whenever
there's some significant drug activity, the community wants to act
swiftly," said Grant.

The islanders' tolerance of cocaine dealers wore thin following a
December 2005 incident in which a man was shot in the hand over a
cocaine debt, Ellis said.

"[Marijuana] is completely accepted but hard drugs are not -- people
here really do not like hard drugs," she said.

The complaints prompted the Saltspring RCMP to create a project
called EPANG, using undercover officers from off the island to pose
as drug buyers. The drug buys happened in various licensed
establishments and in Centennial Park.

The operation, which carried on for several weeks, came to a head at
2 a.m. Saturday, as Mounties moved in and made arrests. During the
fracas, a man high on cocaine jumped on an officer and broke one of
his legs. He was taken to hospital, where he had surgery.

"If this was Victoria it would be just another day, but on this
island the rumours are flying," said Ellis.

"People tend to think of Saltspring as a very safe place, and even
from our perspective it is a very safe place. There's not a lot of
property crime.

"As for personal safety, the island is also quite safe. However, it's
beginning to catch up with everywhere else."

Michael James Reynolds and Eugene Ethan Marcano, both 24 and of
Saltspring Island, are charged with two counts of trafficking
cocaine. Marcano also is charged with aggravated assault, assaulting
a police officer, escaping lawful custody and failure to provide a
breath sample.

Two men of no fixed address and a youth also face drug charges.