54,000 PLANTS AND COUNTING

Driven by a 300 per cent increase in complaints from people living in
the north, RCMP in B.C. have launched the CRIME Task Force, a large-
scale effort to fight the problem of commercial-scale marijuana grow-
ops.

So far, 24 people, the majority of whom are newcomers to the Cariboo,
are facing possible charges.

CRIME, or Cariboo Region Integrated Marijuana Enforcement, has formed
because over the preceding 17 months there was a 60 per cent jump in
the number of active investigations into marijuana grow operations in
Quesnel, Prince George, Williams Lake and 100 Mile House.

The grow-ops are 33 per cent bigger than they used to be.

Clearly, RCMP said, organized crime is fueling the increase and the
people of the Cariboo have told the RCMP's drug enforcement branch
they want the criminals gone.

The pilot project started Sept. 7, 2010. Since that time, 27 marijuana
grow operations have been taken down. That translates into more than
54,000 marijuana plants.

In addition, six unregistered firearms have been seized. There are
more takedowns and arrests to come, and the federal RCMP is actively
targeting the senior leaders of these criminal operations.

The RCMP's federal drug enforcement branch is working closely with
regional RCMP drug sections, the Combined Forces Special Enforcement
Unit (CFSEU) and local detachments to pilot CRIME.

Their goal is to enforce Canadian law against marijuana growers whose
current operations occupy the north.

These newcomers to the Cariboo region, RCMP said, have no regard for
the land they occupy; streams are being diverted, growth-enhancing
chemicals and pesticides are leaching into the soil, and garbage is
being left behind.

The criminal enterprises being targeted by the CRIME Task Force are
not for personal use.

These large, commercial operations have direct links to the
international trade of guns and cocaine.

Federal, provincial and local agencies have all been consulted, along
with local governments and the residents themselves, to make sure that
criminal networks are not comfortable with their efforts to expand
into the north. The RCMP's Drugs and Organized Crime Awareness Section
(DOCAS) will continue to educate people about healthy choices
surrounding drugs.

The RCMP will keep working with the people of Quesnel, Prince George,
Williams Lake, 100 Mile House and other communities in the Cariboo.

CRIME Task Force comes to the Cariboo