BARN WAS BUILT TO GROW, SAYS RCMP

The electrical wiring in the huge grow-op found last week on McConnell Road
was a little too perfect.

The setup was just too tidy and too sophisticated to have been wired by
anyone but a professional electrician -- and that's becoming a worrisome
new trend, say RCMP officials.

One of the largest marijuana grow-ops so far this year was uncovered with
3,967 plants Wednesday.

Many were in a specially constructed barn in the 48700-block of McConnell
Road, says Cpl. Sean Sullivan, media liaison for Chilliwack RCMP.

He says It took about 10 police officers about seven hours to dismantle the
grow-op believed to have been operating for about a year.

Two people were arrested on-site and face charges of possession and
production for the purposes of trafficking, as well as theft of electricity.

"We've been working with provincial electrical inspectors on the problem of
grow-ops," Cpl. Sullivan says.

"We're starting to see some trends and to identify people involved. If
caught, these people will lose their licences."

It's become clear that licensed electricians are doing "illegal" work in
setting up these indoor pot plantations and facilitating the theft of
electricity, he says.

Sometimes they'll find wiring coming out of a dryer duct or "wild wiring"
coming out of the electrical panel.

These unsafe situations are "huge disasters" just waiting to happen, he adds.

"Or sometimes when there's an illegal setup to steal electricity, you'll
see loose wiring, and it will be difficult to tell which wire is powering
which light."

With this one, all the electrical wiring was all perfectly set up. He says
the barn contained one of the "most sophisticated" grow-ops he's ever seen
in terms of the setup, level of tidiness and ability to see how it all
worked at a glance.

In the other barn, they found a clone farm used to furnish smaller plants
called clones.

"Those plants then turn into larger plants that yield the bud they
harvest," Cpl. Sullivan adds. He says the largest grow-op they ever took
down was the one last fall on Bailey Road, where they found just under
7,000 clones.

What was unusual in the McConnell Road operation was that the barn building
was erected "with the sole purpose of growing marijuana," which is in
contrast to most of the grow-ops they typically find in residential homes.

"It was upscale and a step above what you'd find in a house," Cpl. Sullivan
says. "A lot of money went into it."

No weapons were found at the site, but a 51-year-old woman and a
47-year-old man were arrested on April 6.

City of Chilliwack staff have posted signs on the property stating the
municipality is taking action in accordance with the city's nuisance,
noxious and offensive trades bylaw.