DRUGS PACE OF ARRESTS MORE THAN DOUBLED

The drug crime arrest rate in Surrey has more than doubled, according to a
survey of arrest reports by the Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics, a
division of Statistics Canada.

Surrey RCMP say the hike is not the bad news it appears, but rather a result
of stepped-up enforcement.

Figures show Surrey has the fastest-rising drug crime arrest rate among
major Canadian cities, reporting a 114 per cent hike from 1998 to 2002 (from
247 incidents per 100,000 people in 1998 to 531 in 2002).

Surrey RCMP Const. Tim Shields said beefed-up foot patrols, started in 1998,
have produced an increase in arrests and those translate into higher drug
crime statistics.

"The increase is in direct correlation to the increase in street-level
police enforcement," Shields said Monday.

He noted the force has assigned 10 officers to foot and bicycle patrols in
Whalley, which has the highest drug offence rate in Surrey.

"We are now starting to see a slight decline in the number of street-level
drug seizures, especially in Whalley, because the enforcement is working,"
Shields said.

In 2003, Surrey RCMP assigned 20 officers to a full-time crackdown on indoor
marijuana grow ops that is averaging almost one takedown a day, something
Shields expects will produce another marked increase in arrest statistics
when the next survey is conducted.

Other major Canadian cities reported less-substantial drug crime increases
than Surrey during the same 1998-to-2002 period, with Calgary posting the
second highest increase of 76 per cent (from 117 per 100,000 in 1998 to 206
in 2002).

Vancouver's drug crime rate rose 33 per cent (from 353 to 468), and Toronto
rose 23 per cent (from 172 to 211).

The CCJS study reports the rate of drug offences has begun to rise in most
regions of Canada after a period of decline during the 1980s and early
1990s-fuelled by an increase in marijuana-related charges.