DRUG BUSTS REVEAL CRACK COCAINE 'BIG PROBLEM' IN OLIVER AREA

The Southern Okanagan Detachment of the RCMP has been making in-roads
into the world of local drug dealers and users. On Tuesday, March 1,
with the assistance of the Kelowna Police Dog Services, local RCMP
officers executed a search warrant for drugs on an Oliver residence.
This was the second search to take place in Oliver and followed on the
heels of drug arrests made at a home in Osoyoos last week.

During the March 1 incident, nine people in the Oliver residence were
arrested and eight of them were lodged into cells at the Oliver
Detachment. In the subsequent search of the residence, a substantial
amount of crack cocaine was seized, along with weapons, marijuana, and
assorted drug paraphernalia related to crack cocaine use and
trafficking.

A 50-year-old male resident of Oliver was held on an outstanding
warrant of arrest.

A 44-year-old male resident of Oliver was released the following day
on a charge of possession of crack cocaine for the purpose of
trafficking.

A 50-year-old male resident of Oliver was released the following day
on one charge of possession of crack cocaine for the purpose of
trafficking and one charge of possession of marijuana.

A 32-year-old female resident of Oliver was released later that
evening on a charge of possession of crack cocaine.

A 44-year-old male resident of Westbridge was released at the scene on
a charge of possession of cocaine and two counts of breaching his
undertaking.

All are to appear in Penticton Provincial Court on May
9.

Obviously crack cocaine is at the heart of the recent drug busts, and
that is a problem in itself, Cst. Don Wrigglesworth points out, since
crack is brutally addictive and the user often becomes a repeat
offender. "You have to look at getting to the addiction first," he
says, commending programs such as DARE, which seek to educate Grade 5
students about the dangers of drugs and alcohol.

For those already caught in its sticky web, getting off crack can be a
lifelong struggle. "It often is the same people that we're picking
up," Wrigglesworth says and the latest group is no exception. "There
are hundreds of people doing crack locally" and as long as there is
the need, as long as there is a market there will always be a supplier.

But he isn't discouraged, just realistic, "Any time we take crack off
the streets it is good, and we have a big crack problem here," he
says. However, much like trying to bail water out of a rapidly sinking
boat, RCMP just skim the surface with these busts because the
"organized guys at the top" are still free to sell their wares.

For RCMP officers one of the most difficult things about crack is
watching how it takes over a person's life. Wrigglesworth says that
drug counselling is imperative and is usually a part of probation, but
"once out on the street, they just have to get back in with the same
crowd and it starts over again."

He has tried to warn people that he sees propelling themselves down
that path, "I've said 'you are going to lose your car, because you
won't have the money for insurance -- you'll need it for crack. You'll
lose your job because you can't get there or crack will interfere with
your performance. You'll lose your family."

But he has seen some positive things happen, "One fellow called me up
after he had made drastic changes to his life. He had been open with
his addiction to his family, had their support and that of his
employer and was working to stay straight. So you can't give up."

Most users and small-time dealers are known to police here and
Wrigglesworth says they are known to a lot of the public as well. "We
have requested the public's continuing assistance in providing
information on local drug traffickers to assist with our ongoing
investigations. We can only do so much on our own and information from
the public often helps us to get the warrants we need so we can
execute searches."