WEIGH STATION SNIFFS OUT DRUGS

Inspectors Again Detect Big Shipment

Inspectors at the West Hawk Lake weigh station on the Trans-Canada
Highway have been credited with sniffing out a major drug shipment,
including the largest load of cocaine in Manitoba history.

And it's not the first time the West Hawk inspectors' keen eyes have
spotted major drug shipments.

RCMP said in the latest seizure, 37 kilograms of cocaine -- with an
estimated value of $6 million once broken down by dealers and sold on
the street -- was found Monday afternoon about 150 kilometres east of
Winnipeg in a semi-trailer hauling potatoes to Toronto.

One hundred kilograms of marijuana, believed to be worth close to $2
million on the street, was also discovered during a search by members
of the Falcon Beach RCMP detachment.

The drugs were bound for a market out east, police
said.

Two British Columbia men are in police custody, charged with
possession for the purpose of trafficking. Corp. Bob Ross of the
RCMP's drug unit lauded the work of provincial transportation
inspectors at the West Hawk weigh scales, who noticed a box in the
back of the truck was anything but potatoes.

'Very energetic'

"Obviously, they are very good at their job," Ross said yesterday,
during an RCMP show-and-tell on the huge seizure. "We're fortunate
they've been able to uncover this type of product that is being
shipped illegally."

Just before Christmas, truck inspectors and RCMP seized 292 kilograms
of high-grade marijuana from an eastbound semi-trailer at the West
Hawk weigh scales.

The discovery was made by an inspector after he compared the truck's
paperwork to what was being carried in its trailer.

In total over the last year, inspectors and RCMP have seized nearly
1,000 kilos of marijuana at the West Hawk weigh scale. "They are very
keen, very energetic," said Sgt. Steve Saunders of the highway
inspectors. "Plus, they have carved out an excellent working
relationship with our Falcon Beach detachment."

In the latest seizure, an inspector called Mounties after finding a
box containing marijuana during a routine check at the weigh station
near the Manitoba-Ontario border.

Once a search warrant was obtained, more boxes were
found.

In all, six large cardboard boxes filled with marijuana and two
smaller boxes of powdered cocaine were discovered hidden amongst the
boxes of potatoes.

Beofre Monday's seizure, the largest cocaine bust in Manitoba occurred
two years ago when 17 kilos were seized by the Winnipeg police drug
unit from a Hells Angels associate who hid it in a spare tire.

Saunders said while Monday's cocaine seizure was huge, the amount of
marijuana stopped from hitting the streets was also
significant.

"If you used (this shipment) to smoke one joint a day, it'd take you
about 500 years to finish it off," he said.

Ross said drug seizures probably represent only the tip of the iceberg
when it comes to drugs moving through the province.

Police believe the drugs are linked to organized crime. "Typically,
with this amount, that's what we assume," said Saunders. "It
underscores how involved organized crime is in the movement of illicit
drugs."

Saunders said the men arrested were not carrying weapons.

"The (weigh station) compliance officers were not in harm's way," he
said.

Police have long said criminals use the country's highways to
transport drug money and drugs. Over the last two years, RCMP in
Manitoba have made record seizures of marijuana being trucked to
Eastern Canada from British Columbia.