KELOWNA – The RCMP has released more information about Wednesday’s search warrant raids of Kandy Krome and Kustoms and a rural property in West Kelowna.
Police say the following items were seized at the automobile restoration site on Auburn Road:
-An estimated 500 fake Percocet and OxyContin pills;
-195 grams of powder suspected to be Fentanyl;
-2 industrial pill presses which police believe each have the capacity of producing about 2500 pills per hour;
-chemical mixer which showed significant signs of use;
-8 kg’s of suspected Fentanyl powder recovered from a shop vacuum believed to be used to clean up after pill production.
“Police estimate that this operation has potentially produced hundreds of thousands of pills, likely distributed locally and possibly beyond,” says Kelowna RCMP Sgt. Alex Lynch in a news release.
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At the rural property in the 700 block of Petterson Road officers found:
-An estimated 800 fake OxyContin pills suspected to be laced with Fentanyl;
-Several gold bars which police suspect may be related to a reported theft.
The following items were seized as proceeds of crime:
-An estimated $40,000 in cash;
-A Dodge pickup truck with an approximate value of $60,000;
-A Cadillac Escalade with an approximate value of $50,000.
The police investigation began on December 12th when the Canada Border Services Agency intercepted a package arriving from overseas which contained a piece of pharmaceutical equipment.
The package was destined for a West Kelowna location addressed to a man known to police.
Three men and a woman face numerous drug related charges.
“The execution of these search warrants by the Kelowna RCMP Street Enforcement Team and West Kelowna RCMP will have a serious impact in the counterfeit production and distribution of Fentanyl laced pills,” says Lynch.
Police say other illegal drug operations have also been shut down in recent months in the central Okanagan.
On November 2, RCMP intercepted an imported package destined for an address in the 1500 block of Pandosy Street in Kelowna. The package contained 24.5 grams of Fentanyl.
On December 17, a search warrant was executed at a property in the 400 block of Neave Court in Kelowna. The search yielded an industrial grade pill press which investigators say showed signs of use as it was believed to be heavily contaminated with Fentanyl. A loaded shot gun was also confiscated. A 22-year-old Kelowna woman and a 28-year-old West Kelowna man are the suspects.
On March 2nd, police raided a property in the 11000 block of Cemetary Road in Lake Country as well as a property in the 300 block of Sandpiper Road in Kelowna. The searches yielded various amounts and types of illegal drugs and several firearms, including a loaded .45 calibre hand gun, multiple stolen bicycles and a set of brass knuckles. A 56-year-old Lake Country man faces potential charges.
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