Image Credit: CFJC Today

By James Peters

Drug, Weapon Seizures

RCMP say firearms made Thursday drug seizure in Kamloops more significant

Jan 8, 2021 | 4:44 PM

KAMLOOPS — RCMP say investigators seized thousands of doses of illicit drugs destined for the streets of Kamloops Thursday, but the most significant impact of the operation may have been the three guns that were confiscated.

The local detachment’s Targeted Enforcement Unit (TEU) and Southeast District Emergency Response Team (ERT) moved in on a residential unit along the Trans Canada Highway frontage road in the western part of Valleyview at about 10:30 a.m. Thursday (Jan. 7).

Executing a search warrant, officers found evidence leading them to an address in Sun Rivers and a storage locker on the Tk’emlups reserve.

The searches yielded more than five kilograms of cocaine, methamphetamine and fentanyl. The three guns, body armour and a large amount of Canadian cash were also seized.

Image Credit: Kamloops RCMP

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Staff Sgt. Simon Pillay, Plainclothes Commander for the Kamloops RCMP, told CFJC Today the five-kilogram drug seizure equates to about 15,300 doses — 1,300 doses of cocaine and 7,000 doses each of methamphetamine and fentanyl.

Cocaine sells for about $80 per gram on the street, while meth sells for about $50 per gram, according to another source within the Kamloops legal community.

Pillay says he is certain this seizure will take a big bite out of the Kamloops drug trade.

“These drugs were destined for the streets of Kamloops,” said Pillay. “When you’re dealing with quantities like this, it’s not unusual for them to have a regional impact as well, but primarily we are focused on the city of Kamloops.”

Unfortunately, one organized crime group’s loss is another’s gain. Pillay says with these drugs unavailable to local dealers, another gang will step in to meet the demand.

He notes that is why the local detachment directs its enforcement focus toward groups likely to use violence as part of their business models.

“The RCMP in Kamloops target the groups who are the greatest public safety threat. So we look for drug groups who are trafficking in firearms, using firearms or using violence and we go after them first rather than waiting for some particular quantity threshold to be met,” said Pillay.

Gunfire from gang members and associates is not unheard of in Kamloops, even if that activity has been quiet in recent weeks. The city has seen high profile instances of gun violence related to the drug trade.

“This firearm use has been targeted at other participants of organized crime but also at the police and involving innocent civilians,” notes Pillay. “In situations like this, managing that risk is the Number One issue for the police.”

One person was arrested as part of Thursday’s raids. The man was released pending further investigation and RCMP submitting its report to Crown counsel for charge approval.