COMMUNITY CONCERN

This is the last in a series of exclusive articles by Examiner
reporter Galen Eagle. This article looks at the drug situation today.

When area native Ian Maxwell returned to Peterborough from policing in
the GTA, he thought he was returning home to a sleepy retirement community.

As the lone officer in the city police drug unit for several years,
Det. Const. Maxwell said he was awakened as he patrolled the streets.

"I thought I was going to pose for pictures and kiss babies while
policing this little retirement community," he said. "My eyes were
opened doing this job as a frontline officer, seeing how much drugs
are out there."

It has been a busy several weeks for area police officers such as
Maxwell.

A group of three young Toronto men and two Peterborough women were
apprehended late last month with more than $30,000 in cocaine, loaded
handguns and a Te c-9 machine gun, the likes of which police say they
haven't seen in Peterborough.

On Nov. 6, city police, Peterborough Country OPP officers and members
of the Biker Gang Enforcement Unit maintained a heavy presence outside
a Lansdowne St. W. home police say is serving as a clubhouse for the
Outlaws motorcycle gang.

The OPP have characterized both events as alarming.

October's seizure, which also included high calibre ammunition, shows
the willingness among Toronto drug dealers to come to the city armed
and ready to use their weapons, OPP Const. Iain McEwan said.

The Outlaws clubhouse prompted a warning from OPP that organized crime
could begin playing an even heavier hand in the city's drug trade.
City police have warned of a potential turf war between Outlaws and
the Hells Angels motorcycle clubs.

But both city police and OPP agree, there's no reason for residents to
panic.

Det. Sgt. Scott Mahoney, a member of the OPP Central East Drug
Enforcement Unit, said the drug trade has ebbs and flows. There is no
indication that drug activity in the area is on a drastic rise, he
added.

"It comes and goes. I don't think it's increasing at an alarming
rate," he said. "We had a couple of big stories in a row that came up,
but if you look at the stats year-to-year, they probably wouldn't be
much different."

In a series of articles, The Examiner has examined the local drug
trade through the eyes of a former drug dealer turned police agent,
Merv Monteith.

For nearly a decade beginning in the 1990s, Monteith said a circle of
local drug dealers and suppliers monopolized the drug activity with
little competition. The Hells Angels took over the drug market in the
early 2000s, he said, but were broken up by a successful police
investigation dubbed Project 4 that netted 25 arrests in 2005.

In the wake of that investigation, the Bandidos motorcycle group and
factions of Toronto street gangs vied for control locally, he said.

Presently, there are numerous groups bringing drugs into the community
at any given time, Maxwell said.

"It's not one group. We can't say it's traditional organized crime
whether it be the mafia or whether it's bikers or gangs from Toronto,"
he said. "Everybody is trying to get in to push their product. It's
like any other business. They have a product, people want it."

Outside influences are playing an increasing role in the Peterboro u g
h's drug trade, both forces agree.

Some of that has to do with successful police crackdowns in Toronto
that have pushed crime and drugs into areas outside the GTA, Maxwell
said.

"With the enforcement that the guns and gangs units were putting on in
the GTA, it just sort of pushed everybody out," he said. "They saw
markets in Barrie, Peterborough, Kingston and outlying community areas."

Crack cocaine remains a popular drug, but the most recent trend is a
greater push towards opiates in the form of prescription pain killers,
Maxwell and Mahoney said.

"At just about the same time we were really starting to see the crack
cocaine take off, we were just starting to get introduced to the
opiates," Maxwell said.

Drugs that people can legally obtain from their doctors pose a unique
challenge for enforcement, Maxwell said.

Teens know the value of their parents' prescription medications. Break
and enters target medicine cabinets. Individuals can lie to their
doctors. Those actually suffering pain can take their medication while
selling some on the side for a profit, Maxwell said.

Opiates such as OxyContin are even more addictive than crack cocaine,
he added.

Donna Rogers, Four Counties Addiction Services Team executive
director, said her agency has seen a startling rise in hard drug use
among teenagers, particularly those who access opiates by stealing
prescription pills.

"We are seeing them willing to experiment with prescription
medication...opiate-based," she said. "We are also seeing more youth
engaged in cocaine, crack cocaine."

That's not to say youth in general are using harder drugs, Rogers
emphasizes. But young people who reach the stage where they are
seeking treatment are using harder drugs at younger ages, she said.

Rogers said her agency has seen a huge increase in clients who have
become addicted to opiates after using them for legitimate medical
needs.

"They start out with legitimate pain management and then it
escalates," she said.

That's often the stage when new criminals are born, Maxwell said, when
newly addicted people turn to crime to get their next fix.

Rogers said it's nearly impossible to gauge whether the community's
drug problem is growing based on the demand for their service because
the agency only operates on an outpatient basis.

"The demand for our service increases year over year...but that
doesn't in any way reflect the need of the community," she said.

The city recently dedicated four full-time officers to their drug
squad, meaning officers such as Maxwell can now do much more public
outreach, educating schools and doctors about the issues.

The phone in the drug unit seldom stops ringing, so the added officers
are good for prevention and enforcement as well, Maxwell said.

"You have more bodies out there to do surveillance or to do a search
warrant," he said.

Mahoney said police will obviously be watching any renewed biker
presence closely, but said most citizens don't have anything to worry
about.

"There is always a concern when you have organized crime groups set up
in your town, but for the most part, I don't think they are going to
be bothering the average citizen," he said.

As for weapons, that is not a new trend, Maxwell said. Guns and drugs
always go hand in hand, he said.

"It's a lucrative business. Drug dealers know that, so they have to go
protect themselves, protect their product," he said.

Both Maxwell and Mahoney agree that cooperation between the two forces
is integral to any success going forward.

"It's important to share information. If we are not working together
we are not as effective as we can be," Mahoney said.

[sidebar]

DRUG MONEY

The Peterborough Lakefield Community Police Service's drug unit files
an annual report to the police services board outlining the monetary
value of the drugs seized in a given year. The following are the drug
seizure statistics from the four previous years.

2009 -$1,305,535

2008 -$1,420,822

2007 -$879,457

2006 -$82,245

NOTE: The above statistics are not necessarily a reflection of the
amount of drug activity in the community during a given year. The
statistics can vary depending on the number of officers assigned to
the drug unit or the execution of a major drug enforcement project in
a given year.