GANGS USING MEDICAL LICENCES TO TRAFFIC MARIJUANA, POLICE SAY

Police across the country are increasingly alarmed over the
"widespread" abuse of medical-marijuana licences issued by Health Canada.

On Friday, authorities announced they had arrested three people in
Maple Ridge who were found to be growing nearly 1,500 plants in a
barn, when they had licences to grow only 220.

RCMP said they seized a helicopter, two pickup trucks and three 30-to
40foot trailers that could be used as "mobile marijuana grow labs."

"We do believe organized crime are using medical licences as a guise
in order to traffic their product," said RCMP Const. Michael
McLaughlin, a spokesman for the agency in B.C.

He said about one-third of the licensed grow operations they
investigate turn out to have more plants than are permitted.

Late last month, police in Nova Scotia reportedly seized 312 plants
from a man with a licence to grow only 15.

"It is a fairly common occurrence," RCMP Sgt. Keith MacKinnon told the
CBC, adding that one scheme involved the sale of a how-to manual for
obtaining a licence by "duping the doctors."

In an email, Health Canada spokeswoman Leslie Meerburg said the agency
works with lawenforcement agencies to "distinguish between people who
are acting within the law and those engaged in illegal
activities."

At the same time that Health Canada is facing concerns about licence
holders abusing the system, it is also facing challenges from patients
going to court to seek greater access to marijuana for medical reasons.

Meerburg said Health Canada is in the midst of considering measures to
reform the Marijuana Medical Access Program, with an aim to "balance
the need to provide reasonable legal access to this controlled
substance with the government's responsibility to regulate it."

Currently, the law allows Canadians suffering from "grave or
debilitating illnesses" to access marijuana for medical purposes. A
physician must sign a medical declaration indicating what the
marijuana will be used for. The patient has a choice of purchasing
dried marijuana from Health Canada, growing his or her own supply, or
designating someone else to grow it for him or her.