RAIDS UNCOVER CRYSTAL METH

'This Has Absolutely Exploded In The Last Four To Five Months,' City
Detective Says

CITY police seized 16 ounces of crystal methamphetamine worth $17,600 --
one of the largest single seizures ever -- in a series of raids last week
that also uncovered a sophisticated identity theft ring.

Police said the arrests of five people gave officials the clearest sign yet
that the highly addictive drug has a solid foothold in the city and that
stolen ID is now as good as cash to buy drugs from some dealers.

"This has absolutely exploded in the last four to five months," commercial
crime unit Det. Sgt. Len Terlinski said.

Drug unit Det. Sgt. Ron Trakalo said the half-kilo of methamphetamine,
packaged in Baggies, was seized in three raids Aug. 25 in the city's West End.

Officers also found two boxes full of stolen ID, including someone's last
will and testament, as well as two ounces of powdered cocaine worth $2,200
on the street, 19 rocks of crack cocaine with an estimated street value of
$380, 35 tablets of ecstasy worth $700 and one gram of cannabis resin (hash
oil) with a street value of $25.

Four men between the ages of 20 and 44 and one 20-year-old woman face
charges for trafficking, possession of goods obtained by crime, possession
of proceeds of crime and passing forged documents. Their names were not
released as the investigation is continuing. Terlinski and Trakalo said
with addicts stealing ID to fuel their habits, usually by breaking into
parked cars, no one is immune from the methamphetamine trade, a trade
largely driven by the Hells Angels.

"We never had a problem with meth until they moved in," he said.

Terlinski said the move to drugs for stolen ID means anyone can be victimized.

He said never leave a purse or wallet in a parked car.

He also said there's little chance of a drug user or dealer getting caught
as they can use someone else's ID to apply for credit on the Internet, buy
goods like laptop computers on the Internet and then sell them on the Internet.

"That's the easiest way -- no one ever sees you," Terlinski said. Trakalo
added methamphetamine is becoming increasingly popular as the drug of
choice for many users as it packs a bigger punch than cocaine. It now also
costs the same as cocaine, $1,100 an ounce or $10 for a "point" or
one-tenth of a gram.

"People are trying to push the meth to take over the coke trade," Trakalo said.

But the effects of methamphetamine are much more extreme than crack cocaine
as users ingest dangerous chemicals that are used to make the drug.

"It basically rots your body from the inside out," Trakalo said.

He and other officers also said methamphetamine will become increasingly
prevalent because it can be made in labs here. With cocaine, it has to be
imported and smuggled across the country to the city.

Trakalo said police did not know if the seized drugs were made in a local
clandestine lab or imported from British Columbia or Alberta, two provinces
where methamphetamine use is more entrenched.

At the same time, there are a lot of so-called "mom and pop" labs being set
up. A temporary lab can be set up in a motel room or the back of a minivan,
he said.

"A lot of other cells and criminal groups are jumping on-board because the
profits are so huge."

Trakalo also said the meth trade could be wiped out if Ottawa put tougher
restrictions on the sale of ephedrine, the main ingredient in
methamphetamine. Ephedrine is a stimulant legally imported into Canada and
used in decongestant cold remedies and health supplements.

"You get rid of ephedrine you can basically solve a lot of meth problems,"
he said.

That's exactly what Manitoba and other provinces are trying to do, Justice
Minister Gord Mackintosh said.

Mackintosh said he and other justice ministers are lobbying the Martin
government to put better controls on the bulk distribution of ephedrine in
Western Canada so it doesn't end up in clandestine labs.

The province is also looking at putting stricter controls on the
over-the-counter sale of other chemicals that can be used to make meth,
including drain cleaner (sulfuric acid), iodine or starter fluid (ether).
Similar programs exist in many American states.

Ottawa has already said it will increase jail sentences from 10 years to
life in prison for people caught manufacturing and trafficking
methamphetamine. The tougher penalty puts crystal meth on the same legal
playing field as cocaine and heroin.