OPIUM SMUGGLING ON THE RISE

A drug popular in Chinatown a century ago appears to be resurfacing.

Police and customs officers recently seized a total of 37 kilograms of
opium at Vancouver International Airport, the Port of Vancouver and a
North Shore residence.

The busts, made in October and November, are more than double the 15.5
kilograms seized by Canada Customs in the B.C. and Yukon region in
2002.

Opium is normally refined into heroin before it's smuggled into
Vancouver, leaving police wondering why there's a sudden demand for
the resin-like drug derived from poppies.

"It's certainly a new disturbing trend, and there is obviously a
demand for it," said RCMP Cpl. Scott Rintoul of the drug awareness
unit. "Historically, we've seen small quantities here and there, but
nothing ever of this magnitude."

Research has shown opium is popular in the Asian and Persian
communities, said Rintoul. Three arrests tied to one of the airport
busts involved Iranians from the North Shore.

The opium flood began Oct. 1, when customs officers at the airport
intercepted a courier shipment consisting of a suitcase and clothing.
The shipper declared the items as gifts.

When customs officers examined the suitcase more closely, they noticed
it was unusually heavy. After peeling back the inside lining, they
found five kilograms of opium in plastic wrap.

The next day, customs officers discovered another false-sided suitcase
that contained about 7.5 kilograms of opium. RCMP have since made
arrests in connection with the first shipment.

Almost a month later, customs officers at the airport intercepted two
more shipments of opium, totalling seven kilograms. In both cases, the
opium was concealed inside decorative pictures added to shipments of
clothing and melons.

That discovery led police to an apartment on West 16th Street in North
Vancouver, where another 1.2 kilograms of opium was seized. Two men
and one woman are facing drug charges in that bust.

Forty-four-year-old Reza Eshghabadi, 21-year-old Mahdi Eshghabadi and
37-year-old Ashraf Nabiloo have been charged with possession for the
purpose of trafficking and importing a controlled substance.

During the airport investigation, customs officers also seized 18
kilograms of opium at the Vancouver port. It was concealed in 10
pallets that were supporting a shipment of sugar cubes from Dubai,
United Arab Emirates.

Chuck Parker, president of the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users,
said opium is uncommon on the streets; smoking of opium and heroin is
traditionally done in private, away from the alleys of the Downtown
Eastside.

"We're seeing more of a problem with crystal meth," Parker
said.

Typically, opium is smoked in a pipe, and costs about half the price
of heroin. Last week, the Courier reported that seven people have died
this year and 10 other have suffered severe brain damage after smoking
heroin.

Opium dens, where people smoked opium, were common a century ago in
Chinatown and in Steveston. They were also popular throughout China in
the early part of the 19th century.