Almost $1 million in drugs seized from Riverfront Avenue apartment: Calgary police

A large-scale drug bust in downtown Calgary has netted almost $1 million worth of narcotics, Calgary police said Wednesday.

In a news release, the Calgary Police Service said the drugs were recovered in an apartment in the 500 block of Riverfront Avenue Southeast on Aug. 15.

“It is believed that the apartment was being used for large scale drug storage, packaging and production-related activities,” CPS stated.

The drugs were discovered as part of a police investigation launched in July in response to a recent increase in local violence and shootings.

According to CPS, one man who attempted to flee the scene was taken into custody after an “extensive struggle.”

A second man was also taken into custody from the scene and an additional search warrant was executed on a Subaru Impreza located in the parkade of the same building, police said.

Drugs seized by investigators include:

• 4,441.4 grams of fentanyl with an estimated street value of $886,240
• 968.9 grams of ketamine with an estimated street value of $80,000
• 26.6 grams of cocaine with an estimated street value of $2,600
• 13.2 grams of fentanyl powder with an estimated street value of $2,600
• 77.3 grams of prescription pharmaceuticals
• 22.393 kilograms of phenacetin, a commonly used cutting agent

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“This is a significant seizure for the Calgary Police Service,” Staff Sgt. Kyle Grant said.

“These drugs had the potential to be very dangerous to our community and we will continue to target individuals who are involved in organized drug activity in our city.”

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Two men, 33-year-old Joshua Lloyd Okabe of Calgary and 23-year-old Darwin Buccat of Calgary, are facing numerous charges, including possession of a controlled substance for the purpose of trafficking.

Buccat is scheduled to appear in court on Sept. 20 and Okabe is scheduled to appear on Sept. 23.

Anyone with information on gun-related activity in Calgary is asked to call the CPS non-emergency line at 403-266-1234 or tips can be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers.