GUNS, COCAINE, SPEED, MONEY LAUNDERING TIED TO GROW OPS

A recently-released RCMP report warns that organized crime is running an
indoor pot growing industry that has reached "epidemic" proportions in B.C.

The national report, that dedicates a page to Langley, comes as no surprise
to B.C. Solicitor General Rich Coleman, who has been fighting to get
federal help for this problem.

"This report confirms everything we already knew. We've been pushing this
issue federally for two years," said Coleman, who is discussing this matter
with federal Solicitor General Wayne Easter today (Wednesday).

"It has been a constant mantra of mine, that organized crime and grow ops
in B.C. are a huge problem for us," Coleman said. The Aldergrove-Fort
Langley MLA said B.C. Mounties are capable of combating the problem if they
could get support from the rest of the system.

"We need help from our judicial system. We need to send a message to these
guys that this isn't the place to do business. That means federal
prosecutors have to bring forward previous criminal records and ask for
tougher sentences," he said.

Titled "Marijuana Cultivation in Canada: Evolution and Current Trends", the
report reveals that Hells Angels and Vietnamese-based crime groups now
control an estimated 85 per cent of the marijuana production and
distribution in B.C.

"The gradual arrival of Asian criminals in the marijuana growing business
in B.C. originally raised serious concerns within the law enforcement
community about a potential all-out turf war with the Hells Angels," said
the report that was released by the RCMP Criminal Intelligence Directorate
in Ottawa.

"There were, as expected, some violent clashes, but so far the two
organizations appear to have opted for respective tolerance. In fact, there
are even cases of "joint ventures". . . Since no one can predict how long
this tacit peace agreement will last, police will have to closely monitor
the situation to identify any change that could point towards a reversal of
(the) situation," said the report.

The report found that organized crime has turned the cultivation of pot
into "a full-fledged illicit industry employing thousands of people and
generating annual revenues in the billions of dollars."

"High profitability, low risk, and relatively lenient sentences continue to
entice growers, making it difficult if not impossible for law enforcement
agencies to make a truly lasting impact on the marijuana cultivation
industry in Canada," said the report.

But there is light at the end of some tunnels, Coleman said. Currently, his
ministry is finding ways to seize criminal assets, and track assets through
Canada Customs and Revenue.

Also a national committee has been put together to find ways to combat
organized crime and its running of profitable grow operations. "Whatcom
County deals with very little of this, we deal with a lot of this. The
reason is our penalties are way softer than any other jurisdiction in North
America. It's time for us to change that," he said.

When Easter was here in February, RCMP officers toured him around Surrey
neighbourhoods and other districts that are plagued with indoor grow ops.

"After he was finished touring the area, the first thing he said to me was
'you guys need help.' I answered back that we've been asking for help for a
year and a half."

"Our problem is grow-ops and how they lead to everything else. I was
listening to a speaker recently who said 'when our troops are being shot at
in Afghanistan by Afghan rebels, those guns could have come through British
Columbia, paid for by the grow ops in B.C.', " Coleman adds.

"The gun trade is tied to it, cocaine, speed, money laundering. For us,
it's based in organized crime and we don't find it a laughable matter."

The report's review of Langley explains: "A vast percentage of the
marijuana grown in the Langley district is sent to other provinces and to
the U.S. Most grow operations are linked to organized crime, often to
Vietnamese-based groups. Mushroom barns are sometimes used to grow
marijuana. Booby traps are not very common. There have been instances of
nails in plywood placed at property lines and electrification of watering
systems. Video cameras are often installed by growers to monitor the
surroundings," said the report.