GROW OPERATIONS TAKE ON VIOLENT FACE

Police Bust 22 Grow Ops In 15-day Sweep Throughout Region

Marijuana grow operations are on the increase, both in sophistication and
in potential for violence according to police who have wrapped up a
two-week crackdown.

Police busted 22 "grow ops" in a 15-day operation and seized 3,781 plants,
36 pounds of drying marijuana bud, $5,000 in stolen property and assorted
growing equipment.

Of particular concern to Mounties was the associated seizure of 37 guns,
including rifles, handguns, an assault rifle and a sawed-off shotgun with a
home-made silencer. Many of the firearms were fully loaded and kept near
doors or beside beds.

The raids resulted in the arrests of 25 males and six females, the majority
of whom had moved to the region strictly to grow marijuana, said Staff Sgt.
Kerry Solinsky of the Southeast District office in Kelowna. "Some of the
persons involved are associated to organized criminal organizations from
theLower Mainland," he said.

Police wouldn't put a value on the crops, but estimate the amount of pot
seized equates to 140 joints per student in the district.

Drawing on Mounties from detachments in Summerland, Penticton, Oliver,
Osoyoos and Princeton, as well as the Keremeos-based highway patrol, the
RCMP formed the South Okanagan Marijuana Grow Eradication Team March 7. The
Kelowna-based RCMP helicopter was also brought in to assist, said Penticton
Const. Terry Jacklin, who was named team leader.

Summerland and Princeton were the sites of five raids each. There were
three search warrants executed in each of Naramata, Oliver and Penticton,
and single raids in Kaleden, Cawston and Osoyoos.

Though some of the raids were in rural areas, most of the grow operations
were in the middle of residential areas, Jacklin said.

"These things are happening in every neighbourhood. It's not restricted to
low-rent areas.

"With these types of weapons being found, it's a great risk to anyone in
the area," he added. "These guns aren't for going out and doing your normal
hunting. They are there to protect their interests."

Growers tend to stick to production and don't sell from their homes,
Jacklin said. They tend to be quiet neighbours who keep a low profile and
are most active after dark.

Noting 18 of the 22 residences were rental properties, police are asking
landlords to take more responsibility to monitor their renters, both for
the public good and their own.

Jacklin said insurance companies are refusing to pay the high cost of
repairs to homes extensively damaged by growers. In two cases, grow ops
were found in underground bunkers with surveillance cameras. One was built
into the side of a hill near Osoyoos and accessed through a narrow tunnel.
Another involved three elaborate grow rooms found under a shop in Princeton.

Though police concede they are only getting a portion of the grow ops,
Jacklin said he believes police are winning the battle.

He notes that word of a police crackdown spreads quickly, and that after
two Princeton raids, two other grow ops were quickly abandoned.