Combined air effort by police brings down marijuana grow operation on the ground
By Contributor
Air services and the RCMP auxiliary constable program combined forces to bust a marijuana grow operation in Slocan Wednesday.
Slocan Lake RCMP said an auxiliary constable had flown the area in the RCMP helicopter from the Southeast District Air Services Program several months ago, spotting and recording the GPS coordinates of a number of outdoor marijuana grow operations.
That information was used earlier this week when RCMP officers in camouflage entered a large, rural vacant parcel of land off Springer Creek Road in Slocan.
“Officers had set up a surveillance point in attempt to apprehend anyone who may come in to tend the crop. After a period of time, officers observed a single adult male arrive who then allegedly tended to the plants. The suspect, a 22-year-old male from Slocan, was arrested without incident,” said Cst. Shaun Foley of the Slocan Lake RCMP.
Using GPS coordinates they were able to locate the site of the “sophisticated” outdoor grow operation that contained about 120 plants, all about three to four feet in height. There was an irrigation system in place that allowed for automatic watering of the plants.
RCMP indicated there was another site nearby, but the 200 or so plants had already been harvested.
Later that evening, officers executed a drug search warrant on the suspect’s property, which was next to the vacant parcel of land. The search of the property uncovered another grow operation in an outbuilding consisting of 160 healthy marihuana plants, some weighing scales and pre-packaged marijuana bud that was ready for street-level distribution.
The suspect was held in custody, but later released on a promise to appear for the alleged offences of production of marijuana and possession of marijuana for the purpose of trafficking.
The suspect’s first appearance will be in Nakusp Provincial Court on Dec. 21.
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