LONGARM TAKING DOWN DRUGGIES

Project Longarm has placed a $480 million dent into the local
organized crime business.

Marijuana accounts for more than $450 million of the myriad of drugs
seized since the local drug enforcement program was launched in 2001.
In the process 1,792 people have been hit with a wide range of drug
related charges.

The unit is responsible for destroying $240 million in marijuana
plants, from grow-ops located in some of the most remote local areas
such as backwoods grow locations in places like Bancroft.

The team of officers from a string of local police services has also
seized an additional $212 million in marijuana recovered across the
region.

Belleville is popular for its lucrative cocaine and crack market, said
Det.-Staff Sgt. John Armstrong, operations manager for the eastern
Ontario branch of the Organized Crime Enforcement Bureau. Oxycontin is
also another major contributor.

"Crack is big in Belleville," he said.

Police have taken more than $2 million of crack and cocaine out of the
hands of local street level pedlars, the majority of which was seized
in Belleville, Armstrong said.

He said the marijuana numbers are substantially higher because the
region possess a vast number of remote locations that serve as a lure
for people with criminal intent. It's also harder to carry out
enforcement in remote communities.

"Geography plays a big part," he said. "They're going to go where the
fertile soil is."

The unit has since assigned designated officers to the Bancroft and
Madoc area in an effort to curtail grow-op activity.

Senior officials in the unit estimate the $450 million figure only
accounts for about 30 per cent of the actual production for the Quinte
area.

"I think we are making a dent," Armstrong said. "There's only so many
of us."

He said the battle against drugs has been amplified by the increasing
number of people drawn toward the financial benefits of the drug trade.

"I haven't seen any reduction," he said. "It's gotten
worse."

During the past decade, officers with the unit have confiscated more
than a $1 million in Canadian currency, along with property and
vehicles worth millions of dollars. The unit is not allowed to use the
money to fund further enforcement.

"All of that stuff goes into the ministry," he said. "In the United
States they do that (put it into enforcement) but we're not that lucky."

The unit also recovered dozens of weapons including 97 prohibited and
restricted firearms.

Longarm is one of 15 such units across Ontario. Armstrong is also
responsible for several other Eastern Ontario operations including
Project Roundup which covers the Napanee to Kingston corridor.

"We lead the province in a lot of commodities," he said. "We are high
up in the provincial program as far as seizures."

Longarm consists of officers from Belleville police, plus officers
from Ontario Provincial Police detachments in Bancroft, Madoc, Picton
and Quinte West.

The team collaborates on all local busts. Search warrants are executed
on a daily basis to gather intelligence that can potentially lead to
lucrative seizures, Armstrong said.

"We have to rely on other police services to support us," he said. "No
individual police agency has enough resources. We would be screwed
without us working together."

Armstrong said he is pleased with the government support for the
program but he could certainly use more staffing resources.

"We haven't had an increase in the number of drug officers for years
and there needs to be," he said.

With dwindling resources, the unit is faced with the daunting task of
properly combating the bustling drug trade. He said the time of year
can determine which drug is the hot seller on the market. Pedlars have
also learned to adopt to the changes in demand.

"They will go to a different commodity if they can't make money in
weed," he said.