POT GROWERS SETTING TRAPS

Gangs Protect Their Marijuana

Marijuana houses can be dangerous to your health in more ways than one.
Detective Ian Calder of Peel's Morality Bureau said deadly traps are being
discovered in pot houses in Mississauga.

He noted that in recent years, officers and even residents have found traps
in Mississauga homes set for the sole purpose of injury, and possibly death.

Last year, investigators raided a Mississauga residence to find timers and
wires mounted to a piece of plywood set above the side door.

The purpose was to trigger an electrocution once the door was opened.

"If we went through that door, we would have exposed the wire and there
would have been a good chance one of our guys would have been
electrocuted," said Calder. "These traps are set to prevent intruders from
stealing their marijuana."

Recently, a real estate agent found copper wire around a pot house in
Mississauga set to give off an electrical shock when touched.

Police say there have been at least three booby-trapped homes in
Mississauga in the last three years, but it is a relatively new aspect of
the pot-growing industry,

The trap issue arose at Friday's Peel Police Services Board (PSB) meeting.
PSB members were informed the federal government introduced legislation
making it a Criminal Code offence for setting a "deadly trap" in a place
used for a criminal purpose.

"If firefighters or police officers are put at risk, injured or killed by
traps set to defend these criminal enterprises from law enforcement or
rival gangs, those who set the traps must feel the full weight of the law,"
said Justice Minister Martin Cauchon at a recent press conference.

The proposed legislation would impose a maximum sentence of 10 years in
prison for those who set these traps. That increases to 14 years if injury
occurs and a life sentence if someone is killed by a trap.

In other jurisdictions, officers have discovered guns connected to doors by
trick wire that would go off when the door is opened, noted Calder.

The legislation was part of a controversial bill tabled by Cauchon Tuesday
before the House of Commons that would decriminalize the possession of
small amounts of pot, meaning offenders would be subjected to fines,
instead of criminal prosecution.

This year, police have discovered around 55 pot houses in Mississauga. Last
year, 147 were found.