DOPE BUSTS MASSIVE

Suburban Operations Worth More Than $2M

City cops have uncovered the largest marijuana grow operation they've
found so far this year. Winnipeg police seized 1,459 marijuana plants
with a potential street value of $1.63 million Wednesday night at 75
Countryside Way, located on the city's northeastern edge near Kilcona
Park.

The next day they seized 650 marijuana plants worth an estimated
$728,000 from a house at 1 Gonville Pl. in Fort Richmond.

"These do appear to be Asian-gang related," said police spokeswoman
Const. Shelly Glover.

She said there is no evidence the two busts involved the same people,
but said it "wouldn't be a surprise" if the suspects knew each other.

Both busts occurred deep in the suburbs.

"I don't have an answer for why they set up there, you'd have to ask
the people who do it," said Glover. "I would assume it's because they
think it's more covert. It's not expected by neighbours and people
living there."

'Pretty suspicious'

Neighbours living near the Gonville Place bust said they had their
suspicions all along.

"We never saw a single person there in eight months," said one
neighbour, who declined to give his name. "We never saw lights on
before 11 p.m. We never saw people. They hired companies to cut their
grass. We were all pretty suspicious for a long time."

"This is the type of neighbourhood where if someone strange drives
down the street at night everybody notices," said another neighbour.
"I bet there were at least three people who called Crime Stoppers
(about the house)."

The Countryside Way bust came as more of a shock to
neighbours.

"I never thought something like this would happen here," said Willy
Giesbrecht, who lives a few doors down from the 2,100-sq.-ft.,
$206,000 house sheltering the grow op.

"In hindsight everything just makes sense," said another neighbour,
noting the house's occupants kept unusual hours and hung big, heavy
curtains in the windows.

Police arrested a 27-year-old male in connection with the bust. He was
released on a promise to appear and faces charges of producing
marijuana and possessing it for the purpose of trafficking.