Vancouver Police have made a significant narcotic seizure with Project Trooper, a six-month investigation into a drug trafficking network operating throughout the Lower Mainland.

In September of 2014, police learned that a criminal organization was supplying residents in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside with drugs including cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and fentanyl.

The crime group was selling drugs to marginalized members of the community. The criminals were also believed to be shipping large quantities of the drugs to Vancouver Island and into Alberta.

On Wednesday, March 11th, with the assistance of our policing partners, investigators from the Vancouver Police Organized Crime Section executed 11 search warrants throughout Vancouver, New Westminster, Coquitlam, Surrey and Maple Ridge.

“The assistance of Federal Serious Organized Crime (FSOC) and the RCMP in executing the search warrants was essential to the success of the project,” says Vancouver Police Superintendent Mike Porteous.

Seizures

  • 20.5 kg of cocaine
  • 1.6 kg of heroin
  • 12.2 kg of methamphetamine
  • 23,000 fentanyl pills
  • 228 kg of phenacetin
  • 12 firearms and ammunition including handguns, shotguns, rifles and assault rifles
  • a crossbow
  • GPS tracking devices
  • a radio jamming device
  • 8 vehicles, 4 with hidden compartments
  • approximately $575,000 in cash

The total value of the drugs seized is estimated at 1.8 million dollars.

Arrests

Charges are being recommended against 11 people for drugs and weapons offences.

“Project Trooper is another example of the alliance between law enforcement agencies in the Lower Mainland,” says Porteous. “We have a common goal, and that is to target violent and dangerous criminals and take them off the street.”

Fentanyl continues to show up in liquids, powders and pills, and can be masked in virtually any consumable product. Fentanyl-laced heroin, oxycodone and other party drugs have resulted in the deaths of many occasional drug users.

On March 3rd, police announced the results of Project Tainted, a joint forces operation targeting the deadly fentanyl drug trade in the Lower Mainland.

The drug does not discriminate, as overdoses have been seen in all segments of society.

Know Your Source? Be Drug Smart

On March 2nd, police and health authorities launched Know Your Source? Be Drug Smart, an awareness campaign designed to educate the public about the dangers of fentanyl, and encourage those who choose to use, to do so with caution.

For more information about the dangers of fentanyl, please visit knowyoursource.ca.