RCMP GRAB 11 TONNES OF HASH

Nine arrested in raid on B.C. wharf

FANNY BAY, B.C. -- RCMP seized about 11 tonnes of hashish as it was being
unloaded from a fishing boat into a dump truck in this Vancouver Island
community yesterday.

Nine people were arrested in the 2:30 a.m. raid at the government wharf in
Fanny Bay, about 170 km northwest of Victoria. Police said charges have
been laid against 11 people.

Police were searching the Ansare II, an 18-metre fishing boat, for
documentation on who owned it and where it was from. They said the hash had
been unloaded from a larger ship registered in Pakistan.

The larger vessel was several hundred kilometres offshore, police said, and
was being escorted to Vancouver by a U.S. Coast Guard cutter. There could
be up to 36.5 tonnes of hashish left aboard the larger vessel, police said.

Those charged are from Vancouver Island communities from Ladysmith to
Victoria.
Each faces charges of conspiracy to traffic in hashish, possession of
hashish for the purpose of trafficking and importing an illegal drug. The
hashish likely originated in Asia and was likely destined for Eastern
Canada, said police.

In 1988, 22.7 tonnes of marijuana were seized in a raid in the Queen
Charlotte Islands.

Checked-by: Pat Dolan