$130-MILLION B.C. POT RING BUSTED

Value Of Cross-Border Smuggling Equals B.C.'S Entire Fruit Industry

Police have broken up a smuggling ring they allege moved more than 9,000
kilograms of B.C. pot into the U.S. and more than $83 million US back into
Canada.

Two men, one a resident of Coquitlam, were arrested Aug. 23 after 57 kilos
of marijuana in eight duffel bags were found inside a Beechcraft aircraft
at an airport north of Spokane, Wash.

Kelly Gerald Maloney, 41, of Coquitlam, was taken into custody after he was
found hiding in a hangar at the Deer Park Airport.

U.S. authorities say he had been aboard the well-equipped Beechcraft being
flown from B.C. by John "Country Doug" Edgar, 61, of Spokane, a former
Washington Air National Guard pilot involved in a 24-year legal battle
concerning his conduct in the military.

The apparent ringleader, a man named Philip Lesher whose information to
police led to the two arrests, earlier had 900 kg of B.C. marijuana seized
from him, say court documents.

Lesher told police he'd moved about 9,000 kg of pot into the U.S. and taken
the proceeds from the sale of the drugs -- $83 million US -- back to Canada.

To put that in perspective, the money -- $130 million Cdn -- equals the
annual value of B.C.'s entire fruit industry.

The potent "B.C. Bud," primarily supplied by members of the Hells Angels
motorcycle club in Canada, was bought for about $3,300 US a kilo and sold
in the U.S. for up to $12,320.

The Beechcraft had operated out of several airstrips in B.C., including
ones in Pemberton and Kamloops. One other aircraft, two large fishing boats
and a semi-trailer also were used by the ring, believed to number at least
30 people in all.

The arrests came after investigators got court authorization to secretly
hide a tracking device in Edgar's airplane.

RCMP conducted surveillance on Edgar in Kamloops in May, when he was seen
landing at an airstrip and travelling to a local motel. The Mounties later
followed Edgar as he made a "heat run" from Canada into the U.S.

A heat run is where a pilot circles his aircraft in the air in a bid to
discover if he's being followed.

Edgar and another former member of the Washington Air National Guard were
at the centre of a decades-long legal battle recently settled for $4 million.

The money went to four senior guard officers who claimed they were wrongly
dismissed from the military unit for taking disciplinary action against
Edgar and the other guard member. At least one of the officers suspected
Edgar of drug use and drug trafficking, but no charges were laid.

Edgar flew F-101 fighter-interceptor jets and frequently arrived at the
airstrip on his motorcycle, wearing a German-style helmet.

He eventually was discharged from the guard for violating the air force's
human reliability program governing military units with nuclear weapons.

"I did my best to get rid of him," said retired Col. Lloyd Howard of
Spokane, who was an Air Guard commander at the time. "He acted like he
didn't have to conform or obey the regulations."

Edgar took the position that "what he did and what he wore on his own time
was his own business," Howard said. "He looked like a Hells Angel, and here
we are with nuclear-equipped jet aircraft."

The incident led to the removal of nuclear weapons from guard units across
the country.