MARIJUANA MAIL ENSNARES THE INNOCENT

Residents who have opened their mail and found a bag of marijuana fear
they've been caught up in a trafficking scheme.

The marijuana mail has been delivered to the return address on the envelope.

But the residents never sent the letters in the first place, and they
suspect drug traffickers are using their names and addresses to run drugs
through the mail.

"They [traffickers] borrow someone else's name and address as the return
address," said Chris Taulu, who manages the Collingwood Community Policing
Centre in the 5000-block Joyce.

"If for any reason it's returned, guess where it's returned to. It's
returned to the address on the envelope."

She said she's had four letters cross her desk in the past couple of
months. She passed them on to the Vancouver drug squad.

Taulu figures each envelope contained enough pot for a half-dozen joints.

In each case, the letters were bound for addresses in the U.S., but didn't
have enough postage.

"There's no letter inside, just the marijuana in a bag," said Taulu. "Maybe
they're just sending it out as samples. It's flat enough that it will get
through Customs. Maybe it's the new way of shipping."

One of the hapless victims is an elderly couple, Taulu says.

"They were just terrified," she said. "Someone had broken into their car
and stolen their registration."

Another man phoned 911 and was told to flush the marijuana down the toilet,
which he refused to do, and handed the drugs over to police.

"They're law-abiding citizens," Taulu said. "What they're afraid of is what
happens if it's a pound of marijuana or cocaine, and the drug squad is
knocking at their door.

"They could be caught up in a raid. How do I prove I didn't [do it]?'
That's what's terrifying them."

Vancouver police spokeswoman Const. Sarah Bloor could not confirm if police
are investigating. "We'll have to look into it further," she said.

Canada Post spokesman John Caines said from Ottawa he had never heard of
the scam before but added: "It doesn't mean it hasn't happened. There are
some people who use other people's addresses, and they get to the mail
before the people take it out of the mailbox.

"I would worry if I were these people, that if it's coming back to that
address, and the people know it's coming back, that they would go get it."

It's an offence to ship drugs or alcohol through the mail. Canada Post is
not allowed to open mail, but can ask the police to do it.