TWO FACE CHARGES IN DRUG BUST

CHILLIWACK -- Two suspects in a recent Chilliwack marijuana growing bust
are close to collecting their pensions, police say. A 60-year-old man and a
57-year-old woman were arrested Thursday when Chilliwack RCMP raided a home
in the 9500 block of McNaught Road. "If opportunity knocks, I guess age is
not an issue," Corporal David Aucoin said, adding that normally growers
arrested in the district are more youthful.

Officers found a typical small grow op, with 227 plants and an electrical
by-pass to fool the BC Hydro power meter, said Aucoin. The man and woman
face charges of production of a controlled substance and possession for the
purpose of trafficking. A recent string of busts and arrests in the city is
business as usual for local police, said Aucoin. Chilliwack, with many
rural properties but close to the border and Vancouver, sees close to 300
grow op busts a year. "Our numbers are high with reference to marijuana,"
Aucoin said.