POLICE SEIZE OVER $800,000 IN MARIJUANA DURING OPERATION GREEN SWEEP

Police across Canada went on the hunt for indoor marijuana growing
operations last week, and Operation Green Sweep made a mark in this area,
as over $800,000 of marijuana was seized in Huron and Perth Counties.

According to a release from the Huron OPP, Perth and Huron County OPP
officers, along with OPP Drug Enforcement Section - London, Stratford City
Police Service, and Western Region ERT and Identification Unit executed two
warrants in Huron and Perth as part of the national Operation Green Sweep.

"A total of 805 marijuana plants were seized with an estimated value of
$805,000, along with $70,000 in growing equipment and a vehicle," the
release stated.

Although the official day for Operation Green Sweep was Jan. 30, Senior
Constable Don Shrophsall, Community Services Officer for the Huron OPP,
explained that the police had to move in more quickly on a site in
Belgrave, and took down that operation on Jan. 23.

The OPP release states that on that date, the police were involved in a
drug operation taking place in Belgrave, and on the evening of Jan. 23,
there was an unusual amount of traffic at the house under surveillance. The
police took a plate number of a 1990 Mazda van leaving the residence, and
stopped the vehicle in Clinton at about 8:45 p.m.

"Officers found two males inside the van and several green plastic bags in
the back section of the vehicle," the OPP release states. "One of the bags
was split and a green leafy material, suspected cannabis marijuana, was
located. A search turned up 266 plants and some growing equipment in the
vehicle. The two men inside the vehicle were arrested and taken to the
Huron OPP Detachment."

With a search warrant, the police entered the Belgrave home and found an
additional 170 plants growing. "In total the officers seized 436 plants
valued at $436,000 plus $18,000 worth of growing equipment and the van was
seized in the process," the release states.

Two men, a 46-year-old from Toronto and a 24-year-old Finland man, face
several charges, including possession for the purpose of trafficking,
production of a controlled substance, possession of a controlled substance,
possession of property over $1,000 and breaching recognizance.

Shrophsall noted that grow houses are becoming more of a problem in Huron
County. Where once police found many illegal plants growing outdoors, much
marijuana is now being grown indoors, he said.

He made note of the number of grow houses police have raided in Huron
County, including the seizure of almost $100,000 worth of marijuana from a
Winter Court residence just before Christmas. Aside from the recent
Belgrave find, he said in the last little while another grow house was
found in that village, as were one just outside Wingham, two in Howick
Township, one in both Ashfield and Colborne Townships, two in Exeter, one
in Hensall, and one in each of Stephen and Hay Townships.

"In January of this year, we've done three already. Three warrants were
executed in January," he said.

Marijuana growers have made many advancements in the potency of their
products. The active ingredient in the plants, or the part which gives the
high, is THC, and Shropshall noted that in some of the plants seized from
homes in Huron County, the THC level has been 25 per cent. "Back in the
'60s, it was three per cent," he said.

Plants being grown indoors, he said, are not giant, but measure from four
to six feet in height. However, he said, the buds on the plant are thicker
and heavier, and these buds are being taken from the plants and sold
separately.

Shropshall said that one plant grown outdoors last year was so heavy and
thick that its product was valued at $5,000. Outdoors, he continued,
growers can only get off one crop a year, but in grow houses, they can get
three. "It's big business," he said.

Houses used by growers, the senior constable noted, are planted from top to
bottom. "They're coming in and setting them up as businesses," he said.

There are a number of signs neighbours can watch for if they think a home
might be set up as a grow house (see sidebar story), but one indicator may
be that there is no one constantly living in the home. "They do not live
there," Shropshall said of the grow houses, adding that for a time there
will be very little traffic, and then when plants are to be harvested,
there will be an increase of traffic.

The business of growing marijuana, he continued, is an international one,
as was demonstrated by the arrests of the men in Clinton - one from Toronto
and the other from Finland.

Signs of marijuana grow houses are many

More and more, people are picking up their phones and giving the police
assistance.

Senior Constable Don Shropshall, Community Services Officer for the Huron
OPP, explained that the police are finding that more people are now calling
in to report crimes. He made special note of Crimestoppers, where those who
call in do not need to be afraid of being identified.

The police are now asking members of the public to help them find homes
where marijuana is being grown, known as "grow houses".

There are a number of indicators people can use to spot a grow house,
according to the OPP.

Following is a list of those signs:

* Look for windows covered in black plastic, heavy curtains or blinds that
are pressed to windows and tightly shut in order to prevent any light from
escaping and to prevent outside light from interrupting the artificial
light cycle. * Condensation on windows is important to look for at these
homes. Humidity inside a grow room is approximately 65 per cent, with
temperatures ranging from 80 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit. These conditions
manifest themselves through condensation on windows. * Sounds of electrical
humming, fans and trickling water can be heard from a grow house. Sounds of
electrical components in an indoor operation create humming sounds, similar
to a transformer on a hydro pole, which can sometimes be heard from a
neighbour's property. Other sounds may include fans running for long
periods of time and trickling water for days from a home. * Neighbourhood
residences experience unexplained power surges or power browning with the
return of normal power flow approximately 12 hours later. * Unusual visitor
behaviour when compared to the average homes in the area. Neighbours may
note inconsistencies in visitors coming to and from the residence, ranging
from no visitors at all - giving the appearance of seclusion - to frequent
visitors for short periods of time. Visitors will often leave one person
waiting in the car while another enters the premises. * Some other
indicators are outdoor and/or indoor lights, radio and/or television
operating 24 hours a day. Flyers left in the mailbox or on the ground at
the front door. Children's toys and bikes outside with no children living
or seen at the residence.

While the police would appreciate hearing from residents who see signs of a
grow house, they also gave a warning: "Members of the general public are
asked not to put themselves in any compromising position while obtaining
information about marijuana grow operations or other criminal activity."