COPS BUST QUEBEC WEED GROWERS

MONTREAL -- Police swooped down on marijuana growers in Quebec yesterday,
hitting more than 70 sites where the drug was in full bloom.

Several arrests were made.

It was the second week in a row that Quebec provincial and municipal police
and RCMP raided fields that are in the midst of harvest season.

Three helicopters and officers from a dozen police forces took part in the
raids, which began yesterday morning.

Seventy sites were targeted initially.

Sgt. Jean Audette of the Quebec provincial police said some of the sites
were hidden in the woods while others were small gardens operated by
individuals.

The swoop is part of Operation Shears, set up by the provincial police in
1999 to investigate hidden marijuana operations. The provincial force
seized more than 500,000 marijuana plants last year compared with 73,000 in
1993.