MASSIVE HAUL OF DATE-RAPE DRUG SEIZED

The RCMP's federal drug squad and the Canada Border Services Agency
have made the largest "date-rape" drug seizure in Canadian history.

Details of the Ketamine bust at the Port of Vancouver will be
released at a joint news conference by police and the CBSA at RCMP
headquarters today.

RCMP Const. Michael McLaughlin said the bust was "quite a bit" bigger
than the 352 kilograms of the drug found in May last year in
Vancouver concealed in a sea container destined for Toronto.

"The 352 kilograms looks small beside this seizure," said a police
source "This is far bigger."

Ketamine is known on the street as "Special K" or "K" and is usually
sold as a powder or concealed in tablets that can produce
hallucinations, euphoria and out of body experiences.

"The powder is odourless, colourless and it dissolves really easily
in water," said McLaughlin. "It is used and has been used as a date-rape drug."

Commercial Ketamine is a liquid that is used as a rapid-acting
anesthetic drug, mainly by veterinarians.

On its website, Health Canada says the drug is also known as big K,
blind, breakfast cereal, cat tranquillizers, horsey P, K, keller,
ket, ketalar, ketty, kit-kat, K-rod, lady K, special K, super K,
vitamin K, squid and wonk.

"It is a tranquillizer with hallucinogenic properties," said
McLaughlin. "The tranquillizer effects are obviously the reason it
can be used as a date-rape drug."