Edmonton – RCMP say that traffic stops on Alberta’s highways have led to significant seizures of illicit drugs, firearms, stolen goods and other contraband materials.
According to a Nov. 28 RCMP news release, from July to November 2019, Alberta RCMP made nine significant drug and cash seizures near Banff, Canmore, Lake Louise and Stony Plain. RCMP members stopped vehicles for various offences and noted numerous indicators of drug trafficking.
The subsequent vehicle searches resulted in the combined seizures of 11 kilograms of cocaine, 1.675 kilograms of fentanyl, 30 grams of meth, two kilograms of MDMA, 90.5 pounds of illegal cannabis, 250 litres of GHB, over $37,500 in Canadian currency and one .32 caliber pistol.
The drugs seized in the stops roughly equate to 33,000 average cocaine dosages, 16,800 average fentanyl dosages, 300 average methamphetamine dosages, 10,000 average MDMA dosages, 50,000 average GHB dosages and over 123,300 average-sized joints.
“These drug seizures are evidence that traffickers can be caught — our officers are skilled, professional members trained in the detection of illicit commodities which includes drug trafficking,” said Alberta RCMP Traffic Services Supt. Gary Graham. “The increased presence of illicit synthetic opioids poses a grave threat to Albertans. Traffic enforcement, because of its very nature, plays a key role in identifying and disrupting organized criminal groups fuelling this public health epidemic.”
The release notes that RCMP will continue to work very closely with its law enforcement and safety partners to keep traveling criminals and illegal activities off Alberta roads and to further reduce crime in Alberta.
