PILOT BUZZES GROW-OP

Spots Outdoor Pot Plants Near Posh Suburb

A keen-eyed pilot larvaciding for mosquitoes put a bug in the ear to cops
yesterday morning, alerting them to an outdoor marijuana grow operation.

The pilot stumbled upon the pot discovery while flying over Kenaston and
McGillivray boulevards, near upscale neighbourhoods Linden Woods and Whyte
Ridge.

He spotted marijuana plants growing in a bushed-area near the intersection
about 10 a.m., said Winnipeg Police Staff Sgt. John Ormondroyd.

'JUST LUCK'

Officers arrived on scene and discovered 70 mature marijuana plants growing
wild. The dope had a street value of $85,000. Growing equipment was also
seized.

"I guess it was just luck on our part," Ormondroyd said. "He was just
flying over, doing what he does. I guess he was just low enough."

Nobody was at the site when police arrived and no arrests had been made by
press time last night. Police are still investigating to figure out who
owns the property. They don't believe it's city-owned land but rather
private property.

Police said the grow operation is not connected to any of the businesses in
the nearby, newly developed strip malls.

While busts of outdoor grow operations are rare in Winnipeg, there has been
a recent rise in indoor operations set up in upscale homes in the city.
Several have been linked to Asian suspects from British Columbia.