POLICE BREAK UP $8 MILLION DRUG TRAFFICKING RING

12 Calgarians, Two B.C. Residents Facing Charges

A criminal organization that used hidden compartments in vehicles to
funnel cocaine into the city has taken a hit, police say, after a
year-long investigation led to charges against 12 Calgarians.

In all, police seized 80 kilograms of powder cocaine worth $8 million
on the street -- the largest seizure in Alberta's history. They also
confiscated four handguns, a rifle, body armour and$330,000 in cash
as part of the interprovincial investigation.

Operation High Noon concluded in early December, but police and the
Crown have worked over the past six months to put charges together,
said Staff Sgt. Darren Cave of the Calgary police drug unit.

Laying charges of conspiracy to traffic cocaine is significant, he
said. "In order to prove conspiracy, we have to provide evidence
there is a criminal organization at work here."

They also incur stricter penalties; the Crown is looking for 15-to
20-year sentences for the two accused.

Cave said some of the suspects charged were involved in the upper
echelons of the organized crime network, and the investigation
disrupted its activities.

But, he said, putting a dent into the criminal organization won't
stop it from operating.

"They never really shut down. Criminals, that's all they know," he
said. "They will reorganize and they will start up again; only this
time, we'll be more aware."

And, he added, this is only one cell. "There are other criminal
organizations that continue to operate this way,"Cave said.

The investigation, which began with a search warrant served on a home
on Hawthorne Drive N. W. in January 2008, unravelled part of an
organized network that transported "large volumes"of cocaine from
B.C. to Alberta, said Cave.

The quantity illustrates the high volume of cocaine coming to
Calgary, he said, noting much of the drug was staying in the city.

In the wake of the seizures, prices for cocaine on the street did go
up, he added.

The weapons, body armour and hidden compartments used to transport
the drugs across the province's boundaries speak to the
sophistication of the crime group, Cave said.

It took close inspection to detect the large compartments, which were
created strictly to move the drugs, he said.

Police from Victoria, Vancouver and Lethbridge, along with RCMP in
Cranbrook and Osoyoos, B. C., participated in the operation.

Some of the nearly 80 kilograms of cocaine -- packaged in
one-kilogram bricks encased in duct tape and showcased by police
Monday --may have come from as far away as South America.

"Our investigators, their belief is it goes down to the United
States, beyond that to Mexico and South America," said Cave.

Criminologist Kelly Sundberg praised the work of the various police
agencies, saying they should formalize their connection.

"It shows a positive move for the combating of drug trafficking
within Western Canada," said Sundberg, of Mount Royal College's
justice studies program.

Charges were laid against 12 Calgarians and two British Columbians.

Of the 14 charged, two have already been sentenced to prison terms.