The Winnipeg police organized crime division’s Insp. Elton Hall spoke to media Tuesday about a drug trafficking investigation from this past spring, as well as Project Gauge — an investigation into firearms trafficking involving 3D-printed guns.
The drug investigation, police said, involved the help of the Brandon Police Service, as a Winnipeg-based trafficking network was supplying traffickers in Brandon as well.
Police said they arrested two people May 11 when they got off a plane at the Winnipeg Richardson International Airport, and seized 24 kilograms of cocaine — with a street value of $2.4 million — from their luggage.
Two women from Winnipeg were charged with cocaine possession for the purpose of trafficking.
The 3D gun case, which began in November 2023, led to a raid on four Winnipeg homes and multiple arrests, after police say they learned a crime network had approached local metal fabricators to create components for Glock-style handguns.
With the help of the RCMP, the Canada Border Services Agency, Correctional Service Canada and Manitoba Corrections, a total of seven people were arrested between March and June of this year, and face charges ranging from conspiracy to commit an indictable offence to weapons trafficking to unauthorized firearms possession.
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Police also seized guns, ammunition, a 3D printer and equipment, tools, computers, cellphones and more.