Thirty searches, two laboratories dismantled, more than a million tablets and fifty kilograms of powdered methamphetamine seized: the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) announced on Wednesday that it had made “a hole in the chain” of production of designer drugs linked to the Hells Angels.
“We have struck a blow,” says Francis Renaud, who heads the Organized Crime Division of the Montreal police. In 48 hours, his group carried out 31 searches in several regions, including nine which targeted street distribution on Tuesday. More than 1 million amphetamine tablets were seized. “At $5 a unit, we are already at $5 million. It’s huge,” says Mr. Renaud.
Only on Wednesday, two production laboratories were dismantled, including one in Entrelacs, in Lanaudière. The other was located in Ontario. On the way from The Press in Entrelacs, crime scene technicians and police had erected a large security device.
“They are essentially encapsulation sites. Here, we take the finished product, methamphetamine powder, and mix it with caffeine to make the famous tablet. If we draw a parallel with [l’émission] breaking Badwe are really in this unsanitary laboratory which manufactures the raw material”, affirms the commander, whose teams also searched “sites used as storage”.
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, PRESS ARCHIVES
Francis Renaud, Commander of the Organized Crime Division at the SPVM
Seizing such quantities is not without risk: several hundred liters of chemicals were also found on Wednesday. “We’re talking about highly flammable chemicals that can create explosions, all handled by budding chemists who don’t have any experience in that. These are not sophisticated laboratories at all,” explains Mr. Renaud.
During the searches, various quantities of ecstasy, fentanyl, cocaine and cannabis were also seized, as were various prohibited weapons, including electric pulse guns, brass knuckles or knives, and several thousand dollars in cash. A total of 13 suspects were arrested, 12 men and 1 woman. Charges of producing and trafficking narcotics should be filed. The police say that a “second phase of arrests is to be expected”.
A hole in the chain
According to the commander, the impact of the operation will be significant in the world of organized crime. “We’ve made a hole in the supply chain, for sure. We don’t see many of these types of operations in Quebec,” says Francis Renaud.
We just created a void. Whether this void will be filled tomorrow, I don’t think, because it takes a whole reorganization. But precisely, it will be up to us to monitor the adjustments that organized crime will take after all this.
Francis Renaud, Commander of the SPVM
“The income generated by the sale of these amphetamines is the same income that is used to buy the firearms that we see on our streets. It is by dint of making holes like that, every day, that we destabilize them and weaken them, so that no one takes control and is king and master in our province, “also hammers the commanding officer.
What’s more, the production of these drugs harms the environment, observes the experienced policeman. “To create one kilogram of amphetamine, there are six kilograms of waste that will be squandered in our nature. In a concern for our planet, we are not there, but not at all. »
An investigation still active
Nearly 300 police officers were assigned to this vast anti-drug strike on Tuesday and Wednesday. The operation targeted several municipalities in Quebec, particularly in Lanaudière, Mauricie and the Laurentians. Operations also took place in Ontario, particularly in Hastings and Napanee counties.
A sign that the operation was major, several other police forces were also involved, including the Sûreté du Québec and the Ontario Provincial Police. The whole thing stems from a lengthy investigation that began last year by the Organized Crime Division’s Antigang team. The investigation revealed “that part of the drug produced by the network was sold in Montreal, Quebec and on the North Shore”.
Francis Renaud assures him: the investigation is continuing. “It will not be by pure chance if we strike again soon. Our people from the drug offices will be on the scene of several searches for a few more days, ”he concludes, calling anyone with relevant information to contact 911, or the Info-Crime Montreal center, at 514 393-1133.