POLICE SEIZE $260,000 WORTH OF MARIJUANA

Every time the Halton police drug and morality squad successfully raids an
illegal marijuana grow house, its officers are pretty sure they're making a
significant dent in the illegal marijuana business.

But the officer who heads up the squad admits police aren't yet sure
exactly what they're up against.

"I wish I knew," Sgt. Larry Burns said. "The unknown is how many (illegal
grow houses) are actually out there. I think there are a lot more than we
know about."

One house the service was aware of, however, was raided last week.

Halton officers Friday used a search warrant to enter a suspected grow
house on King Road in Aldershot. Police said nobody was living in the house
at the time but that it appeared to have been recently occupied by a family
with young children. They describe the house as a "thriving marijuana grow
operation" that included a bypassed hydro meter. Police say rewiring hydro
meters to access necessary amounts of electricity to power hydroponic
equipment has been a technique used in a number of other illegal grow
houses in the region.

Police called in Burlington Hydro workers who shut down the hydro service
to the house. Officers seized 260 marijuana plants and at least $30,000
worth of hydroponics equipment from the house.

The estimated street value of the marijuana is $260,000.

Burns anticipates making arrests in the case soon.

Until then, he says, officers will continue to look for signs of illegal
grow houses and attempt to shut them down.

"We kind of play it day-by-day and try and do what we can resource wise
with what we have available and plug on from there," he said.

Signs of illegal grow houses include houses in residential areas that have
odd smells permeating from them, people carrying in and out significant
amounts of planting materials, including soil, and consistent condensation
forming on windows.

Anyone with information on illegal drug grow operations is asked to phone
Crime Stoppers of Halton at 905-825-8477.