Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - June 27, 2004, Winnipeg, Manitoba A4 Winnipeg free press sunday june 27, 2004 pot houses continued from Page a1 the sheer amount of pot being seized ? ramp uprooted 3,000 plants at four grow houses discovered in St. Andrews june 18-20 ? suggests that a criminal network is at work packaging and distributing it. The investigation is still in its infancy but this much is known so far Accord ing to sources. The majority of the accused Are Cana Dian citizens. At least four of the accused charged since Jan. 1 had arrived in Winnipeg from Western Europe within the past six months three had dutch passports and one had a German passport. Each of the four had secured foreign citizenship after claiming refugee Sta Tus in those countries. None of these people was documented in immigration Canadas database meaning they were allowed to Clear Canada customs on six month visitors visas without any follow up by authorities until they were arrested by City police. Two of those arrested for growing mar Ijuana have similar charges against them for allegedly doing the same thing in another Canadian province. One of the 11 accused is now alleged to have overstayed a six month visitors visa but no immigration proceedings have taken place yet because the Crimi Nal charge must be dealt with first in court. Two of those charged were caught by police March 22 As they drove out of the City. They Are alleged to have been behind two of the grow operations in Winnipeg and were found in a car packed with personal possessions and $18,000 can in Cash and about $1,000 us. One of them also faces a charge of mar Ijuana cultivation in Hamilton ont. None of the 11 people have had their charges ? cultivation of marijuana and Possession for the purpose of Traffick ing ? dealt with in court. All have been released from pretrial custody. Federal Crown attorney Ian Mann said prosecutors have a list of questions they want police to answer besides the citizenship and immigration status of each suspect. Mann said he wants to know who owns the houses where the grow operations were found whether the same real estate agent is involved and How the Pur Chase of each Home was financed. How can you get a mortgage if you have no income Mann asked. Mann who prosecutes drug cases said he also wants to know whether the Homes were bought with Cash and if the same person is responsible for illegally wiring the indoor grow operation typically located in an unfinished basement. The Canada Revenue Agency is also looking at the Winnipeg cases. Officials ramp handout photo marijuana plants thrive in a Large hydroponic indoor grow operation police discovered in a Winnipeg Home. Are also examining How the Homes used to grow the marijuana were purchased and whether taxes were evaded. Sources say the purpose of delving into the backgrounds of the accused and their relationship to one another is to find out whether they Are connected to an established crime group. Police have Little information right now other than the suspects ethnic background to show they Are involved in a criminal Enterprise. Many have claimed they cannot speak English and when a translator is sup plied have not furnished police with any information. The criminal intelligence service Canada disc in its 2003 annual report defined asian based organized crime in Canada As loosely knit networks of individuals who Are highly Mobile entrepreneurial culturally and linguistically diverse and with numerous criminal associates nationally and internationally particularly in the United states and Southeast Asia. Those arrested in grow houses Are believed to be recruited in Exchange for being helped to enter Canada. They Are considered the Bottom rung of the lad Der and do not know much if anything clues for spotting a neighbourhood pot House some Winnipeg police pointers for spotting an indoor marijuana grow operation. Evidence of tampering with the electricity meter damaged or broken seals or the ground around it. Homes made to look lived in by the use of Light timers but very few people Are seen coming in and out of the Home. Strange smells or overpowering smells of fabric softener. Water lines and or electrical cords running to the basement or outbuilding. Unusual noises such As hammering or drilling into the basement foundation. People bringing unusual items into the House such As bags of soil lots of Plant roots and potting plants. About who is distributing the drugs and profiting from it. Disc also says these criminal groups will remain Active in Canada in Large scale marijuana cultivation in order to take advantage of the High profits Low risk and relatively lenient sentences. Mann said the accused in Manitoba do. People continually bringing items and taking items away in garbage bags. Windows that Are always covered. Residence or outbuilding has unusual number of roof vents or exhaust fan noises. Outbuildings that have air condition ers. Unusual amounts of steam coming from vents in the House in cold weather. A House rooftop with no Snow on it when the roofs of surrounding houses Are Snow covered. High condensation around windows. Purchase of very expensive heat lamps for unexplained reasons. For a full list log on to not have any known criminal Back ground. Police have said in the past that typically first time offenders charged with growing marijuana get conditional sentences ? not jail time. entry exit laxity aids pot Ops critics say by Bruce Owen a Lack of checks at Canadian entry Points and almost non existent exit controls help spawn the growth of Large scale marijuana grow operations in Manitoba critics of Canadas immigration policies claim. They also say organized crime takes advantage of Canadas Liberal immigration policies to sneak people into the country for criminal purposes Many under Guise of declaring refugee status. Our immigration department is a real mess said John Thompson presi Dent of the Mackenzie Institute a Toron to based think tank that studies terrorism political extremism warfare and organized crime. These people will get into trouble in Winnipeg but they la just disappear and show up again some where it Means we re letting in people who Don to belong added Martin Collacott a former Canadian ambassador to Middle East and asian countries and a senior fellow at Vancouver a Fraser Institute which examines economic and social issues. Crime pays the Way we do in the past six months police in Winnipeg Ottawa Calgary Toronto and Van Couver have dealt with a rising number of cases involving indoor marijuana grow operations that they claim Are linked to asian based organized crime. The loosely connected groups allegedly peddled marijuana and other drugs throughout North America then Laun dered the illicit funds Back to Canada and Vietnam through both real and fictitious companies. Critics such As Thompson and Colla Cott say the increase in grow Ops tied to asian crime shows that the Federal government has to impose More rigor Ous Entrance and exit controls so authorities have More Power to follow up on people coming into Canada. Currently there Are More than 30,000 people on the Canadian police information Centre database wanted on warrants for immigration violations. Most often they Are caught Only when police arrest them on other matters or on routine traffic stops. ;