N.B. MOUNTIES NOTCH RECORD POT HAULS

RCMP says public has helped them take 23,000 plants out of circulation

The public is increasingly tipping off the RCMP about marijuana
grow-operations and one Mountie thinks part of the reason for that can
be traced to Moncton.

In summer of 2004 police simultaneously raided 14 houses in Moncton
and arrested 18 people. All the homes were found to house large
marijuana grow-ops and were linked to organized crime.

Police confiscated 5,000 plants worth more than $10 million and more
arrests were made in Hamilton, Ont., at an operation connected to the
one in Moncton.

Many of the houses were in nice neighbourhoods and it was a major
wakeup call that organized crime doesn't only exist in someone else's
backyard.

"I talked to the neighbours of some of those houses that day," says J
Division RCMP Staff Sgt. Gary Cameron. "People realized this is
dangerous, it supports criminal activity and indirectly, their
children may be involved."

Cameron means when marijuana is grown in a community it's also sold in
that community, meaning the pot can fall into the hands of young people.

"It's everybody's responsibility," he says, of the battle against
illegal drugs, such as marijuana.

Every August and September, the RCMP in New Brunswick take part in
Operation Sabot, aided by the Canadian military. Police and army
helicopters take to the sky and search for outdoor grow-ops, then
radio to officers on the ground below when they spot one. Those
officers move in and seize the plants, though arrests are seldom made
because they rarely find people at the fields.

Over the past few months the RCMP have seized more than 23,000
marijuana plants at various outdoor grow-ops throughout New Brunswick
and Cameron says most of those busts were connected to Sabot. It's a
53 per cent increase over what was seized during that operation last
year.

Cameron says the larger number of pot plants seized is not surprising,
but the extra help from the public is.

"We're really surprised by the increase in public support and tips
we're getting," he says, adding it's growing every year. "That's the
key to us eradicating marijuana in this province of New Brunswick."

Cameron says RCMP officers are always keen to volunteer for Sabot,
which also adds to the success of the operation. He says those
officers live all over the province and they don't want grow-ops in
their communities any more than the average citizen.

Police in this province have had big years before when it comes to
busting grow-ops. There were 32,000 plants seized in 2004, followed by
almost 38,000 in 2005.

The 2005 number was largely skewed by the seizure of almost 20,000
plants from one location in Adamsville in Kent County. That seizure
was reportedly worth $20 million, according to the calculation of
$1,000 per plant.

Cameron says if you set aside that freakishly large marijuana seizure,
2010 is a busier year than 2005, as far as the number of
investigations and the number of plants seized.

The 23,000 plants seized this year would produce an estimated 10
million joints.

"That's a significant number of joints to keep off the street," says
Cameron.

With criminals losing revenue because of the plant seizures, they have
less money to put towards other activities, such as the trafficking of
harder drugs like cocaine, or the establishment of clandestine labs to
produce things like crystal methamphetamine.

"By taking these drugs off the street, we hope they don't have the
funds to do those other things," says the sergeant.

Some people in society believe marijuana should be legalized, so
police can focus their efforts on harder drugs and other crimes, but
Cameron doesn't agree with that. He says marijuana is harmful and
causes both health and social problems.

"As a police officer, a father and a grandfather down the road, I know
any type of drugs and substances affect families and can break up
families," he says. "As a father, I don't want my kids taking drugs
and we need this out of our communities."

Now that the fall harvest is over, police will turn their attention
from outdoor grow-ops to indoor grow-ops.

"As the weather gets colder, we are likely to see a rise in indoor
grow-operations," says RCMP Federal Policing Inspector Guy Rook.
"These operations can be very dangerous to communities. Indoor
marijuana grow-operations pose an increased risk of fire, toxic
chemical exposure and of course criminal activity which can bring a
higher potential for violence to our neighbourhoods."

The RCMP encourages people to report any suspicious activity in their
neighbourhoods to police or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).