POT OP STOLE $1K HYDRO EACH MONTH

Pot Grower Given House Arrest

A man convicted of running a large-scale rural grow operation narrowly
avoided a prison sentence yesterday.

Instead, 55-year-old Michel Laurin was sentenced to two years of house
arrest, to be served in his home town of Montreal.

After living most of his life in Montreal, Laurin was arrested outside Vita,
Man., on Sept. 23, 1999, after a nine-month RCMP investigation into
marijuana grow operations in rural parts of the province.

'Operation Deflower'

The investigation -- code-named "Operation Deflower" -- turned up four such
setups, including Laurin's, which was hidden inside a barn in the Rural
Municipality of Stuartburn.

At the time of the bust, police turned up more than 5,500 pot plants inside
the barn, and also learned approximately $1,000 in electricity was being
stolen from Manitoba Hydro each month.

"This was an involved and expensive operation and in fact was one of the
largest in Manitoba," said federal Crown attorney Anne Krahn.

Laurin pleaded guilty yesterday to one count each of possession of marijuana
for the purpose of trafficking and illegally obtaining hydro-electric power.

His lawyer, Tim Killeen, said Laurin was a problem gambler who lost all his
money, then was lured into the grow-op trade with promises of $1,000 in
profits a month.

Queen's Bench Associate Chief Justice Jeffrey Oliphant said he believed the
claim, and denied the Crown's recommendation for a prison sentence in the
range of three to four years.

He warned Laurin -- a first-time offender -- not to get re-involved in
illegal activity.

"The profits of the drug trade are high, but as you have learned ... so is
the price if you get caught," Oliphant said.

Laurin's two-year conditional sentence is to be followed by a three-year
period of supervised probation.

He's already paid restitution in the amount of $9,000 to Manitoba Hydro.